Heaven Can Wait
by pastaaddict
Summary: WWII. Squadron Leader Arthur Kirkland's last words before he jumps from a crashing bomber without a parachute are with American wireless operator, Amelia F Jones. After he miraculously survives, they meet and fall in love but there's a problem! Arthur was not supposed to survive and Heaven demands that he comes up! Rated T to be safe!
1. I Love You! Goodbye!

**I wasn't going to put this up until it was finished but the next chapter of Hetalia Tales 5:5 isn't ready and I wanted to put something out today so here we go! This is based on an old David Niven film called A Matter of Life and Death (It's called Stairway to Heaven in America). I just love the story and I hope you enjoy it too.**

 **Characters**

 **Squadron Leader Arthur Kirkland – England**

 **Flight Engineer Kyle Kirkland – Australia**

 **Amelia F Jones - America**

 **I do not own Hetalia or A Matter of Life and Death!**

 _ **Chapter 1 : I Love you! Goodbye!**_

 _World War II_

Squadron Leader Arthur Kirkland was amazed his Lancaster bomber was still flying with holes in the fuselage and flames pouring from one engine and one failing, the two remaining engines did not sound too healthy either.. He could not see where he was as the entire bomber was surrounded by an impenetrable fog but he believed he was somewhere over the English Channel. He was the only person alive on the bomber, the rest having been ordered to bail out while Arthur attempted to keep the crippled plane in the air. He had not bailed out with them because he did not tell them that, when the fuselage was damaged, shrapnel had shredded his parachute.

The only other human being on board was the bomber's flight engineer, Kyle Kirkland, a cousin of Arthur's whose family had emigrated to Australia and he had returned, just before the war. He and Arthur joined the RAF together and Kyle was a wizard with machinery but he had fixed his last engine. He lay on the bomber's deck, the plaster that he always seemed to have, stuck across his nose and his eyes stared sightlessly at the top of the plane as Arthur struggled to keep flying.

He would have taken the time to grieve for Kyle later but he did not think he was going to live through this himself. Oh well! He would be seeing Kyle soon and he reached his radio microphone. He want to get a message out before he checked out for good.

"This is G for George!" He said into the mic, given the plane's call sign. "This is G-George! can anybody hear me? Over!"

* * *

Amelia F. Jones was two hours into a six hour night shift, manning the radios and monitoring incoming transmissions. So far the radio signals had been pretty routine and boring and she stretched and yawned. She had arrived in England as part of the US Air force shortly after her country entered the war. Her brother followed shortly after her as a doctor at the base to which she was assigned and she cuddled down into the bomber jacket that he had given her when she enlisted. She would have loved to be a pilot but the military did not allow women in planes.

She ran her hands through her shoulder-length blonde hair and rubbed her blue eyes as she settled down for another boring night when …..

"This is G for George! This is G-George! Can anybody hear me? Over!" The British accent came over the speaker with a hint of urgency, breaking the silence. Amelia immediately operated the microphone to answer the call.

"Hear you loud and clear, G-George!" she replied. "What is your position? Over!" He sounded cute!

"No idea!" came the reply. "Somewhere over the Channel, I think. Navigation's shot, my bird is on fire, my flight engineer is dead and it's only a matter of time before I start falling out of the sky. I ordered the rest of my crew bale out at 01.40am but my parachute was damaged when we were hit. What's your name? Over!" Amelia scribbled down what he told her about his crew bale out to report so a rescue could be sent.

Arthur was happy that his last conversation would be with, what sounded like, a pretty girl, American, by the sound of her voice. And nice.

He wanted to know the name of the last person he would ever speak to and she could get a message to his loved ones that came from him and not some impersonal, black-edged telegram. She sounded like the sort of person who would do something so kind.

"Calling G for George!" the girl's voice came over his speaker. "Calling G-George! Crew baled out at 1.40am! Got that! What about your flight engineer's parachute? Can't you use that? Over!" It was sweet that the girl was trying to think of ways to save him but he had already thought of that.

"Damaged too." he replied. "I have two choices! Stay put or bale out without one. What's your name? Over!" Amelia did not like it that there seemed to be no way to bring this man home. She wanted to be his Heroine and save him but, at the very least she could answer his question.

"I'm Amelia," she replied, ready to cry at her helplessness to save this man. "Amelia F. Jones. Over!"

Arthur smiled on his side on the radio at her reply. Amelia! Her name matched her sweet voice.

"Lovely to meet you, Amelia," he replied. "I'm Squadron Leader Arthur Kirkland. Where are you from? Over!"

"Boston, Over!" Amelia replied, thinking what a normal conversation this was to have in the middle of a crisis.

"A city with lots of history!" Arthur commented. "I'm from London myself. Are you pretty? Over!" Amelia almost laughed at the question.

"I think so," she replied. "At least, that's what I've been told. What about you? Are you handsome? Over!"

"I been told I have hideously big eyebrows," Arthur admitted. "Unfortunately for my brothers, they run in the family. What are you doing after your shift finishes? Over!" Amelia felt like she was getting 'chatted up' as the British would say.

"I'm on duty 'till six," she replied. "Then I'll go back to Hetalia House where I'm billeted. Over!"

"Old house? Over!"

"Quite old! Over!"

"Maybe I'll become a ghost and visit you," Arthur joked. "You're not afraid of ghosts, are you? Over!" Amelia gave a watery smile.

"I won't be afraid of you, Arthur. Over!" she replied. Arthur smiled at his end of the radio.

"Good!" he said. "I have a favour to ask. Over!" Amelia could not refuse Arthur anything at this point.

"Of course. Over!" she said with a lump in her throat.

"I want you to get a message to my brothers," Arthur told her. "24 St George's Street, London. Tell them I love them, even if they are gits half the time. I've never really told them that before, you'd have to know my family to understand! Tell them not to read the telegram when it comes. I don't want to be remembered by some mass produced piece of paper that the MoD will just add my name to. Tell Allistor and Rhys they're the biggest pillocks I've ever met but they're also the best big brothers and tell Patrick and Seamus not to emulated those two idiots but do listen to them sometimes, they occasionally say something sensible. Over!"

Amelia could not stand the idea that this man was going to die, leaving behind brothers that he bickered with but clearly loved. There had to be some way to save him!

"Arthur," she begged. "Let me report this! There might be some way we can help. Over!"

"No point!" Arthur replied as one engine spluttered and finally cut out,quickly followed by the other, the only sound now the roar of the wind outside. "No one can reach me in time, I've just lost my last two engines so I'll be losing height now. I'm sorry, I'll have to cut our conversation short, Amelia! I'm going to bail out now, I've decided I'd rather drown than burn and I'll probably be unconscious when I hit the water any way. You know, it's funny! I've never been in love but I think I could have loved you so I will anyway. I love you, Amelia! Goodbye! Over!"

The radio went dead. A cold hand of dread clutched at Amelia's heart as the line went silent and she operated the microphone.

"Calling G for George!" she cried. "Calling G-George! Over!" There was no reply from Arthur and Amelia wanted to break down and cry but she had something to do before she gave in to grief. She grabbed a pad of paper and a pen to write down the address Arthur had told her and everything he had asked her to tell his brothers then relayed the information about Arthur's bailed out crew which, in turn, was relayed to the Navy.

Then she broke down and cried.

* * *

Arthur dropped the mic and moved passed Kyle's body and prepared to throw himself from the plane. He gave his cousin's body a last look.

"Well, Kyle, old boy!" he said to the corpse. "I'll be seeing you in a minute. You'll know if we have wings when we get up there. I guess I'll soon find out!" Arthur stood at the edge of the opening in the deck of the bomber. He gave one last thought to the American girl on the other end of the radio.

And jumped.

 **I went with Nyo! America for this story, it just seemed to suit the time period better. What happens next will have repercussions so stay tuned!**

 **Hasta la Pasta!**


	2. It's Heaven, Isn't It!

**Back with Chapter 2! Ready to climb the stairway to Heaven? Enjoy!**

 **Additional Characters**

 **Elizaveta – Hungary**

 **Man in Heaven – Estonia**

 **Boy on beach – Sealand**

 **I don't own Hetalia or _A Matter of Life and Death!_**

 _ **Chapter 2 : It's Heaven, isn't it!**_

Flight Engineer, Kyle Kirkland never thought Heaven would be like this. Everything was white with smooth, curved walls, not a sharp edge or pointed corner in sight. Right now Kyle was sat on a cushioned bench, watching attending angels, stood behind a counter, processing the new arrivals to Heaven and handing them their wings. Wartime was such a busy time for them as members of the militaries of every country involved in the current conflict spilled from the stairway that Kyle himself had traversed less than an hour ago. He scanned each new arrival, looking for someone in particular.

Two soldiers came off the stairway but neither of them were Arthur. One was dressed in a British Army officer's uniform and the other was dressed in a French one. The Frenchman was babbling in rapid French but from the hand gestures, Kyle surmised that the Frenchman was describing his death. When he finished, the army officer patted the Frenchman on the back and said, "Bad luck, old man!"

Kyle settled back into his seat as a crowd of American pilots came up the stairway, laughing and joking with each other. 'Well, at least dying had not dulled their mood,' Kyle thought as he figured that, somewhere, an American plane, perhaps a B-17, had gone down. They crowded round a machine dispensing a certain brand of soda that had appeared from nowhere and acquired bottles of the drink without needing quarters. Then they went to the counter to the attending angels. The angels presented a book for them to sign in and the pilot was the first to pick up the pen and scribbled his name in the book.

"I am assigned officer's quarters?" he asked, handing the pen to his co-pilot.

"All quarters are the same up here," the angel handing him his wings replied. The co-pilot smirked as he softly shoved the pilot to one side.

"Excuse me! Brother!" he drawled and he signed the book. Kyle lost interest and went back to watching the top of the stairway. After dealing with the American crew, Elizaveta looked up at the Australian who had yet to sign in but refused to until his cousin came. Elizaveta had already checked that Squadron Leader Arthur Kirkland had yet to arrived. The Hungarian angel with the long, brown hair had decided that either Arthur Kirkland had not arrived yet or was not due to.

"Flight Engineer Kyle Kirkland," she said as he looked up at her. "You can't stay here much longer, you really must sign in!" Kyle looked at the stairway one more time.

"You're absolutely sure Arthur hasn't arrived yet?," he asked. "There's no way he could have made it off the bomber alive! There's no mistake?" Elizaveta looked a little affronted.

"There hasn't been a mistake here for over a thousand years," she replied. Kyle raised a rather smug eyebrow.

"So mistakes have been made before," he said. Elizaveta looked a little uncomfortable.

"There was a mistake," Elizaveta admitted. "The girl before me. She told me that when there's a mistake, the alarm starts ringing in the Records Office" She pointed to some raised round viewing portals nearby.

"And how long have you been here?" Kyle asked as they strolled over to one of the viewing portals that looked down into the Records Department of Heaven.

"Six hundred years," Elizaveta replied and they looked down. Kyle had to admit that narrowed down the odds of a mistake. He looked down into the Records Department at all the people moving about among the billions upon billions of files, containing the details of everyone who lived or had ever lived on Earth.

"If someone had told me that there were clerks beavering about up here," Kyle mused. "I never would have believed them." Elizaveta smiled as another soul wandered over to the viewing portal and looked down. He had short blonde hair and green eyes behind square glasses as he looked around in awe.

"It's Heaven, isn't it!" the man exclaimed in an Estonian accent. Elizaveta gave a look of vindication.

"See, Mr Kirkland," she said. "Some think it would be Heaven to be a clerk!" And she steered Kyle to the counter to sign in and receive his wings.

"But it is possible for a mistake to be made?" he asked. Elizaveta sighed.

"Yes, it is possible but unlikely," she pointed to a complex ornate time measuring system above the counter. "If a mistake were to happen, such as if your cousin, and you, didn't sign in by the end of my shift, the alarms would ring when the time ran out."

"Then I better sign in," Kyle replied. "I wouldn't want the alarms to ring." He smiled at Elizaveta who smiled back as he signed the book and another angel behind the counter handed him his wings.

The clock ticked round but there was still no sign of Arthur. The clock ticked down and Elizaveta's shift ended and Arthur still had not arrived.

And the alarms began to ring.

* * *

The waves of the English Channel lapped against Arthur as he drifted, face up, toward shore, kept afloat by his flight harness which was a good thing because Arthur could not swim even if he was conscious. The current drove him toward the sandy beach and finally washed him ashore.

Arthur slowly awoke as the early morning sun shone down on him. He blinked in the sunlight, slowly standing up out of the shallow waves splashing over him and staggered out of the water. One of the first things he noticed was that he was missing a boot. He looked around as he discarded his flight harness and pulled off his remaining boot. Was this Heaven? It looked like a sandy beach in Britain. It had to be Heaven, there was no way he could have survived the jump from his bomber!

Where did he go? Was there some special place he had to report to? Why had nobody met him? Surely someone should have, to tell him what he did next!

He began to walk down the beach, pulling off his sopping wet socks and unzipping his flying jacket and discarding it, leaving his RAF uniform underneath, despite the fact that the uniform was sopping wet too. He must have walked a mile before he saw any sign of life when he heard a bark and turned to see a black and white border collie who stared at him and panted.

"So there are animals in Heaven," he mused. "I rather hoped there would be." He knelt down and called the dog to him. The collie obeyed and gave himself up to the strokes and pats that Arthur bestowed on him and then the dog padded away and Arthur followed him. As he pursued the dog, he began to hear the sound of a wind instrument, like a recorder. Arthur followed the music and came across a young boy, blonde, blue-eyed and with eyebrows that might have marked him as a Kirkland.

"Hello," Arthur said to the boy. "Where do I report?" Surely this boy could tell what he needed to do. The boy looked at him strangely.

"At the base, of course," he replied. What officer did not know that?

"The base?" Arthur began to realise that he was not dead or in Heaven. How he survived, he had no idea but it became clear to him that he had and been swept ashore in Britain. "Where is this base?" The young boy pointed down the beach.

"Just follow that path," he replied, pointing at a trail on the beach above the tidal point and coming down the trail was someone riding a bicycle. "That'll be one of those American girls. The Yanks use the trail to return to Hetalia House." Arthur turned to look back at the boy. Hetalia House! That was where Amelia said she was billeted, the girl on the bike might know Amelia. Arthur thanked the boy and ran toward the bike rider.

* * *

Amelia had reported the contact with Arthur to her superior so they knew his crew was out there so a rescue vessel could be sent and, maybe, they might find Arthur's body and be able to return it to his family. After that, she passed a rather subdued shift as Arthur played on her mind and she was glad when her shift ended.

She clutched the precious scrap of paper with Arthur's last wish written on it and retrieved her bike. Fuel was at a premium, thanks to the war, so fuel-less travel was keenly encouraged. She put her untouched lunch-box into the bicycle basket, put the paper into the pocket of her uniform and began her journey back to Hetalia House.

As she pedalled back to Hetalia House, her mind turned back to the British pilot who was probably dead now and Amelia wanted to cry again as the feeling of helplessness swept her again. Then she was pulled out of her melancholy by a voice calling to her.

A blonde man in an RAF uniform was running toward her bicycle, calling out in a British accent and she stopped her bike. As the man ran up to her, she noticed he was bare-foot and somewhat wet. He stopped in front of her and she noticed that he was rather cute with emerald green eyes and she wanted to cry when she saw his huge eyebrows.

Arthur said he had big eyebrows.

"Can I help you?" she asked and the man looked like he had been hit by a truck.

* * *

Arthur would know that voice anywhere! That Boston accent, so foreign to him but played so sweetly on his ear. The girl in front of him was very pretty with shoulder-length blonde hair and eyes the colour of the summer sky and she wore an female US Air force uniform.

Could he had been so lucky as to be swept ashore close to his American angel on the radio?

"Amelia?" he asked, tentatively.

* * *

Amelia wondered how the man knew her name and then it occurred to her that she had heard his voice before. She tried thinking of all the British officers she knew but none came to …..

That voice! It could not be!

Could it?

"Arthur?" she replied, just as tentatively as he did. The man's eyes glowed and his face split into the biggest smile she had ever seen. It was him! How he had survived she did not know but he was alive, that was all that mattered!

"Arthur!" She exclaimed, taking his face in both hands as if to reassure herself that it was him and he was here alive in front of her. "You're alive! But how …..."

Arthur disregarded her question, sweeping her into his arms and into a passionate kiss!

 **Our love birds have finally met but, as you can tell, they weren't supposed to and that'll cause trouble later. 'It's Heaven, isn't it' was spoken by a very young Richard Attenborough in, probably, one of his first roles.**

 **To madsbouc** **– Happy to have given you what you wanted and I hope I don't disappoint with the rest of the story :) I update every week and I only have about two chapters left to finish on this story so the updates will be regular. Stay tuned!**

 **To Normandy** **– Not to worry, he didn't! ;) But, as you see, that's the problem! And no hamburgers will be harmed in the writing of this story! :P**

 **To DeiDeiArtistic** **– Yeah! Sad about Australia but he's not gone yet! :D Hope you enjoyed this chapter as well :)**

 **To ArtemisIsis13** **– I'm not surprised you're not familiar with the film, I only came across it by accident as it was released in 1946 and flips from black and white to colour. I made you cry in five minutes! Is it bad of me to feel proud of that? :D Kyle might be dead but he's not gone yet. He'll be popping up every now and then so look out for that! :)**

 **That's that for this week! Next week, There's trouble in Heaven and someone comes looking for Arthur with bad news.**

 **Till then,**

 **Hasta la Pasta!**


	3. Bring Him Home!

**In light of the recent tragic events, I'm dedicating this chapter to the people of France. Those who were lost, those who survived and those who now grieve! Liberté! Égalité! Fraternité! France, we stand with you!**

 **Additional Characters**

 **Gaia – Ancient Greece**

 **Francis Bonnefoy - France**

 **I do not own Hetalia or _A Matter of Life and Death!_**

 _ **Chapter 3 : Bring Him Home!**_

Almost twenty hours had passed since Heaven was sent into chaos by the unimaginable. A mistake! Everyone involved was called to stand before the Head of the Records Office to find where this mistake had occurred. Gaia read the report of the total number of soul expected and the total of souls arrived.

"29, 092, 015 souls invoiced," she read. "29,092,014 arrived. We appeared to be missing a soul" The dark-haired woman looked over everyone assembled and focused her attention on a man in eighteenth century clothing. He had long blonde hair, tied back with a ribbon and had deep blue eyes with a rose in his lapel.

"Collector 14," Gaia said. "19 hours have elapsed since Squadron Leader Arthur Kirkland should have reported in. Why did you not report this mistake?" Collector 14 AKA Comte Francis Bonnefoy had been spending most of those 19 hours looking for his errant charge but the English Channel was a big stretch of water, especially in a thick fog. After Arthur Kirkland jumped from the bomber, Francis had lost him in the fog and Francis had not found him again and began to panic.

"Désolé, madam! I lost my head," he replied, sheepishly. "I failed to find after he jumped. The fog was so thick, I couldn't see a thing. Terrible English weather!" Gaia gave him a stare.

"How long have you been with us?" she asked him. Francis gave a look of distaste.

"Since the French Revolution," he replied with a hint of contempt.

"Natural death," Gaia replied, casually. Francis looked even more offended. There was nothing natural about someone sticking your head in a guillotine.

"I lost my head!" he repeated, testily. Gaia gave a sigh.

"There's been a development," she revealed. "He has fallen in love!"

"Ah!" Francis exclaimed, his mind filled with the sweetness of L'amour and then he realised what this could mean. "Oh!"

"Exactly!" Gaia replied. "It complicates things!"

"Flight Engineer Kyle Kirkland, mam," Elizaveta told her. Kyle gave a polite nod.

"Flight Engineer Kyle Kirkland," Gaia replied. "You waited for Squadron Leader Arthur Kirkland, correct?"

"Yes," he said. "I knew Arthur wouldn't be far behind me so I decided to wait. Our bomber was full of holes, one of engines was on fire and another had stalled. Arthur ordered the rest of the crew to bale out but didn't tell them his own parachute was useless. I only knew because I'd bought it by then." Gaia raised an eyebrow.

"I mean I'd already died," he clarified. "He was flying a crippled bomber in a fog so thick you could almost walk about on it."

"Exactement!" Francis exclaimed, feeling vindicated at Kyle's agreement about the weather.

"There was no way Arthur was going to survive," Kyle continued. "So I knew something was wrong when he didn't show up after me."

"Thank you, Flight Engineer," Gaia replied and turned back to Francis.

"Collector 14," she said and Francis winced. Did she have to call him that? He had a name! "You will go to Squadron Leader Arthur Kirkland, explain your regrettable mistake and persuade him to return here with you!"

"Bon!" Francis replied and turned to leave.

"Wait!" Francis turned back to the Head of Records who turned to Kyle.

"Your cousin!" she said to him. "Does he listen to reason?"

"Arthur! Oh yes!" and then he thought for a moment. "Well, sometimes. Unless he's had a few!"

"Pardon?" Francis asked, perplexed.

"Beers!" Francis laughed.

"Ah, La bière!" he chuckled and Kyle laughed with him.

"Well, scotch is a bit difficult to come by on rations," he joked. "Could you tell him something for me?"

"Of course!" Francis replied.

"Tell him 'G'day, mate!'!"

"Bon!"

* * *

Francis appeared in the grounds of Hetalia House and looked around at the vibrant colours of the flowers, lit by the moon and the stars in the midnight blue above him. Francis loved being on Earth. Heaven had its own beauty but all that white made it all monochrome. Heaven was starved of colour and Francis would enjoy Earth while he could.

Then he went in search of Squadron Leader Arthur Kirkland.

* * *

Amelia took Arthur back to the base where he was examined by the medical staff and then debriefed. The good news was that a Royal Navy vessel had found the rest of his flight crew and, aside from suffering from mild exposure, they were safe and well. The big mystery was how Arthur had survived jumping from the plane. His crew and his radio conversation with Amelia proved he had been on the plane and had jumped from it. His survival was nothing short of a miracle.

Arthur was assigned quarters at Hetalia House until his orders came through from the MoD and he and Amelia had spent the day together, getting to know each other better. She told him about her brother, actually her half-brother but they left the 'half' bit off. Matthew was the eldest, born in Canada but after his father died, their mother had married an American, Amelia's father.

Arthur told her about his brothers, how he was the only one of them that was blonde, the other being varying shades of red but all had green eye and, of course, huge eyebrows. Allistor was in the army, training the new recruits to face the enemy. Rhys was in the Home Guard, an old rugby injury having ruled him out of the regular army but still wanting to do his bit. Patrick was in the Fire Service and they all looked after Arthur's only younger brother, Seamus, who was too young for war duty and tended to the vegetables that grew over the Anson shelter and looked after the chickens in the garden, collecting eggs to supplement their rations.

The night had fallen and they were sat in the gardens of Hetalia House, the scent of the flowers drifting on the air and the full moon shining down, the only light around as the base and the nearby town were in blackout. Amelia laid down on the blanket they had brought with them while Arthur sat beside her. He took out a hip flash and took off the cover which doubled as a cup, set it down on a nearby rockery stone, unscrewed the top and pour a little brandy into the cup.

"Drink, Love?" he asked, looking down at Amelia and then turned to pick up the hip flash cup. The cup was missing and he looked around to see if the cup had fallen from the rock but it was nowhere to be seen. He pulled the second cup from the bottom of the hip flash and filled it up and put it down on the rock. He screwed the top back on and went to picked up the second cup, only to find that it had vanished as well. Then there was a smell. A not unpleasant smell of fried onions.

"Bonjour!" a greeting in a French accent sounded beside him. He looked up and saw a tall man with long, wavy blonde hair, tied back by a ribbon, He had blue eyes and his clothes looked old-fashioned. Like eighteenth century old-fashioned. He was also holding the two hip flask cups.

"Do you mind if I keep these for a while?" the Frenchman asked, holding up the two cups. "We have something important to discuss!" Arthur turned to Amelia.

"Amelia, love!" he said but Amelia did not answer. In fact, she seemed …. frozen!

"She cannot hear you, mon ami," the Frenchman told him. "In fact, she has not heard or seen anything since you said 'Drink, Love?', Squadron Leader Arthur Kirkland!" Arthur frowned at this stranger knowing his name.

"Have we met, sir?" he asked. The Frenchman smiled.

"Comte Francis Bonnefoy, at your service," the man introduced himself. "We would have met last night, had not been for the fog, mon cher but never mind, we can go now!"

"Go?" Arthur was confused. "Go where?"

"Mon cher," Francis gave him a sympathetic look. "What happens when you jump out of a plane without a parachute? Do you live? It's time to go to the training centre for the next world. It's time to go to Heaven, mon ami! "

"What are you talking about?" Arthur was sure this man in fancy dress was a lunatic. "How do I know you're just some French madman?"

"I bring a message from your cousin, Kyle," Francis hoped that this would convince Arthur of the truth of what he was tell him.

"Kyle's dead!" Arthur felt a pang of grief for his deceased cousin.

"Oh yes!" Francis agreed. "He is!"

"How do you know him?" Arthur demanded. "What did he say?"

"We met recently," Francis explained. "And he said 'G'day, mate'!"

"That sounds like Kyle," Arthur had to admit but was far from admitting to believing the stuff this Frenchman in eighteenth century grab was spouting.

"Mon ami," Francis replied, patiently. "You were supposed to die last night. I missed you in the fog so you didn't and I've come to collect you now. But look on the bright side, mon cher! You've had an extra day of life but it's time to go!"

"You're insane!" Arthur exclaimed and turned to Amelia. "Amelia! Wake up, love!" Amelia did not move.

"I told you before, Angleterre," Francis said. "She can't see or hear us. But she is enchanting." Francis looked down at the blonde American girl and could see why Arthur was so smitten. "Ah well! She mourn you and then she'll meet someone else and move on."

"Like Hell!" Arthur fumed and Francis shuddered. "Just say I believe you. Just say I was supposed to die last night! Had you collected me last night, I would have gone with you. Last night, I expected to die but I didn't and now, thanks to your mistake, I'm in love! I've walked into this girl's life and fallen in love and I believe that she loves me."

"Ah, but mon cher!" Francis replied. "People are in love all over the world. Pilots, soldiers, sailors! But they don't complain when their time comes, do they?"

"How many fall in love after they were supposed to die?" Arthur pointed out. "I'm in love now because I didn't die which means I'm a completely different case. I can't just leave Amelia now and I don't want to. Can you make me come with you?"

"Non, _I_ can't," Francis admitted. "But it causes a very big problem if you don't come!"

"Your problem, not mine!" Arthur declared. "There must be some way I can appeal. After all, had you done your job right, I wouldn't have met Amelia! There must be some ministry of appeal I can apply to!"

Francis could not help but be moved by Arthur's passionate speech, even though it would cause trouble for him with his superiors if he could not bring this to a simple conclusion. But, Ah! L'amour!

"Very well, Angleterre!" he announced. "I will return for further instructions but you, my friend, try not to fall in love any more than you have already!" He look down at Amelia again. "Ah, yes! She is quite enchanting!" And with that, Francis disappeared.

"No thanks, sweetheart!" Amelia said, sleepily. Arthur turned round to face Amelia.

"What was that?" he asked, confused.

"You ask me if I wanted a drink," she replied, opening her eyes to look at Arthur's blank face. He turned back to the rock to find both hip flask cups sitting there, empty. He was sure he had filled them both. His head began to ache as he turned back to Amelia.

"You heard him, right?"he asked.

"Heard who, sweetheart?"

"The Frenchman," Arthur was beginning to panic and his head began to ache. "He was here. He told me I was supposed to die last night and that he was to take me to Heaven but he missed me in the fog. He wanted me to go with him and leave you behind!" Amelia gave Arthur a concerned look.

"Arthur, I didn't hear anyone!" she replied but Arthur clamoured to his feet and started yelling at the sky.

"WELL, I'M NOT GOING!" he shouted. "DO YOU HEAR ME?" Amelia stood up and grasped Arthur's shoulder and pulled him round to face her.

"Sweetheart, what's wrong?" she demanded. Arthur's face suddenly creased up with pain as a sharp pain stabbed him behind the eyes and he put his face in his hands as if to ease it. Amelia became scared.

"Arthur, are you all right?" she cried. The pain eased off, leaving behind an ache and Arthur looked up toward Amelia but there was something wrong. His vision was cloudy and he could not see her. She was lost behind a shadow across his eyes and he began panicking again.

"Amelia!" he cried. "Where are you? I can't see you!" Amelia was really worried now because she was right in front of his face, there was no way he could not see her. She took his face in her hands and put hers inches from his.

"I'm right here, Darling," Arthur blinked and the shadows receded from his eyes and Amelia's face appeared from the disappearing shadows. He wrapped his arms around her and held like he would never let he go.

"I thought I'd lost you!" he declared, desperately, hugging her tighter like she would vanish like morning mist if he let go and she let him, hugging Arthur back. Something was wrong with Arthur, maybe something they had missed in the infirmary. Tomorrow she would go into the village and bring Matthew back to look Arthur over properly.

"It's going to be all right!" she promised.

 **And this is where it begins! Arthur's headaches will be important as the story goes on and Francis will be back. During the war, growing vegetables and keeping livestock like chickens was encouraged to help add to rations.**

 **To takuya** **– I'm so happy you like it and you know I will! ;)**

 **To madsbouc** **– Thank you! Elizaveta just seemed right for that role. :) Now would I do that to you! Well, yes I would but I decided not to! When they met just seemed to be the right place to end the chapter but be warned! Not all my cliffhangers are so nice! ;P**

 **To Normandy** **– And the reason why Arthur didn't die becomes clear. UsUk isn't everybody's ship but I'm glad you're enjoying it! :) Kyle's not gone yet but you won't see him for a while now but he will be back! The BTT's game Shots should be a Olympic event! XP**

 **To ArtemisIsis13** **– I suppose even Heaven needs administration and order and peace was definitely shattered when the alarms went off! DX. Yes, Francis's little error gave birth to L'amour! (he must be so proud!) I would say that Kyle is a probationary angel, being trained to become the real thing. Listen out for a ringing bell! (Oops! Sorry! That's** ** _It's a Wonderful Life!_ ) And you will see Kyle again! And feel proud I will! XP**

 **And that's that for another week! Some familiar faces will appeared in the next chapter and concerns for Arthur's health intensify. Till then,**

 **Hasta la Pasta!**

 **Vive La France!**


	4. Call The Doctor!

**Back with the next chapter! To those of you waiting for the next part of Hetalia Tales 5:5 I must offer my sincere apologies! :( I had the chapter all written. AND THEN IT DIDN'T SAVE! DX I'll have to write it again but haven't yet found the time. This chapter is only out because it was already done but I promise that when it's done, the next Hetalia Tales 5:5 chapter will go up immediately. Please just bear with me!**

 **Additional Character**

 **Doctor Matthew Williams – Canada**

 **Lieutenant Matthias Kohler – Denmark**

 **Lieutenant Lukas Bondevik – Norway**

 **Enjoy!**

 **I don't own Hetalia or _A Matter of Life and Death!_ **

_**Chapter 4 : Call The Doctor!**_

Doctor Matthew Williams was up in his attic, playing with his toy. His telescope was one of his pride and joys as he polished the brass and the lenses. Many a time, back in Canada he had used this telescope to watch the Aurora Borealis and to gaze at the stars in the Canadian sky. Now he gazed at the stars in a new sky, at the different constellations that hung over England.

Matthew was one of many doctors assigned to the base but, because the village itself had no doctor, he volunteered to stay in the village to tend to the residents as well as attending to his duties on the base and he was well-liked by the villagers who took the polite Canadian doctor to their hearts and liked the idea of a doctor nearby.

Matthew's telescope stood by a pair of doors that opened on to a balcony where Matthew stood the telescope when he was stargazing and through the open doors, he could see village life go by.

"There goes Mrs Peters, Kumajirou," he said to his pet, a big white dog that resembled a polar bear cub. "Probably off to post a letter to her daughter, eh!" Kumajirou looked up and then put his head back down and went to sleep, completely uninterested. Matthew watched as a group of girls from The Myercroft School for Young Ladies from the nearest town cycle through the village and there went the ladies of the local WI out doing good again. And there went the land girls going out to work in the fields, Digging for Victory.

Another bicycle wove its way through the village and Matthew immediately recognised the US uniform the girl on the bike wore.

"It looks like Amelia's paying us a visit, Kuma," Kuma's head came up at the name of Matthew's little sister. Matthew continued to polish his telescope, knowing that his housekeeper, Mrs Mason, would tell Amelia where he was.

As if Amelia could not guess.

* * *

Amelia stopped her bicycle outside the cottage that her brother had been given as a surgery and leant it against the garden wall, opening the garden gate to be greeted by Mrs Mason, a cheerful middle aged woman who hair was on the verge of turning grey, who was sweeping the front step.

"Hello, dear," she greeted as Amelia walked up the path. Amelia F Jones was not as quiet as her brother but she was like a breath of fresh air whenever she came to see the charming doctor.

"Hi, Mrs Mason," Amelia replied. "Matthew where I think he is? In the attic, tinkering with his over-sized spyglass?" Mrs Mason chuckled.

"You know your brother so well," she smiled. "Go on up! I'll make some tea!" Amelia went in and climbed the stairs, smiling. Tea! The great British icon. She climbed the stairs to the attic to find her brother cleaning the telescope lenses.

"Careful, Mattie!" she said. "You'll wear the lenses away, the amount of polishing you do!" Matthew smiled at his sister, put down his cloth and hugged her. Kuma came over and Amelia pulled a treat from her pocket and fed it to him.

"And what's this I've been hearing about you," he teased. "Finding pilots washed up on the shore after jumping from Lancaster bombers without parachutes and surviving."

"That should be classified information!" Amelia declared.

"A miraculous story like that, you can't keep quiet," Matthew replied. "It was bound to get out. The vicar and some of the old dears are calling it a miracle, the old school British officers are calling it an example of how you can't kill the British spirit! Your squadron leader's become quite a celebrity but what's this I hear about him being billeted up at Hetalia House with your guys. You know you can't go around kidnapping good-looking RAF officers because you like the shape of their nose, eh!"

"It wasn't his nose!" Amelia declared, cheekily. "It was his voice! I fell for that before I ever saw him!" Then she became serious. "But could you come and examine him? Something happen last night …."

"I know!" Matthew replied. "One of the officers at the house gave me a call last night after you took him to the sick room. I was coming in later today after surgery at 5.00pm to examine him. He's been having hallucinations about some kind of messenger coming to take him to Heaven?"

"He believes the hallucinations are real," Amelia said. Matthew nodded.

"They will be," he answered. "To him! I'll know more when I see him so I'll see you later when I get there. I know you have to get back!" Amelia nodded.

"I see you at five then," she said and went to the stairs. Then she turned back to her brother. "Oh, Matt!" Matthew looked over at his sister.

"He does have a cute nose too," she quipped and disappeared down the stairs, leaving her brother to chuckle.

* * *

Lieutenants Matthias Kohler and Lukas Bondevik could hear the sound of a motorcycle as they drove their army jeep down the country land toward the base. Both men had been in England when both their countries were occupied and offered their military service to the British against a common enemy which was gratefully accepted.

Matthias held the steering wheel straight and checked the wing mirror, seeing a familiar motorbike revving up behind them. No one would have thought that the polite Canadian doctor was a petrol-head but his motorbike was his other pride and joy, one he did not get to indulge in very often because of fuel rationing, although he was granted a higher ration due to his profession, needing to get to places quickly. Those on the base, however, were familiar with the good doctor's love for his bike.

"It's Doc Matthews!" Matthias grinned. "Here we go!" At the end of their journey, the Norwegian was going to strangle the Danish man for encouraging this lunacy as he stepped on the accelerator when Matthew came neck and neck with the jeep in his leather helmet and goggles. The jeep and the motorbike raced down the lane, each occasionally edging ahead of the other. Then came the fork in the road as they waved to each other and Matthew took the fork to Hetalia House and Matthias and Lukas continued on to the base.

* * *

Matthew stopped his bike in front of Hetalia House, a Georgian edifice with big windows and Romanesque columns. He stripped off his biking gloves and his helmet and goggles and put them in the pannier on his bike and made his way into the house.

Matthew was told that Squadron Leader Arthur Kirkland was in the ballroom and as Matthew went in, he found the British airman was not alone. There were many in the room, mostly American, rehearsing the play 'A Midsummer Night's Dream', making the costumes and one of the radio operators was making the poster.

"That's not how you spell Shakespeare!" the girl being fitted for her Titania costume said, pointed to the miss-spelt 'Shakespere'. The other girl snorted.

"Who are you, his agent?" she retorted. Matthew moved past them to the end of the room where his sister sat, playing chess, or trying to, with a blonde, bed-headed man with green eyes, in an RAF uniform.

"Good evening," Matthew greeted. Amelia looked up and stood to hug her brother. Arthur stood up out of his chair to meet the newcomer.

"Hi, Matt!" Amelia replied. "Arthur, this is my brother, Doctor Matthew Williams! Matt, this is Squadron Leader Arthur Kirkland!" The two men shook hands.

"Any chance of some tea?" Matt asked. Amelia nodded.

"We just ordered some," she replied and she and Arthur sat while Matthew went to get himself a chair.

"Who's winning?" he asked, indicating the chess board.

"Amelia's not bad," Arthur declared to which Amelia snorted.

"I think Arthur's being a gentleman and letting me win," she said. "I don't know one gambit from another and I think some of my moves have been illegal! Matthew, Arthur knows!"

"Knows what?"

"Why you're here!" she replied. "What you are! All about you! And that I told you all about him!" Matthew turned to Arthur.

"And have you told Amelia about your poetry?" he asked. Amelia looked between the two men.

"What poetry?"

"You didn't know this is that Arthur Kirkland!" Matthew had a collection of books on poetry and among them was a volume of prose by Arthur Kirkland but she had only seen the book once and forgotten about it.

"Oh, I didn't know!" she exclaimed. Arthur looked rather sheepish.

"I didn't want to brag!"

"I don't collect much modern poetry but I have your book," Matthew replied. "I like your point of view and I hope we can talk about it but let's get down to business." Matthew went into 'Doctor' mode. "Have you had vision or hallucinations before?" Arthur shook his head.

"What were you doing before the war?" Matthew had researched Arthur's file and launched into a series of questions to test Arthur's memory and awareness.

"I was at Oxford, studying European history," Arthur replied.

"Parents alive?" Arthur shook his head again. "Brothers? Sisters?"

"Four brothers,"Arthur replied. "One in the army, one in the Home Guard, another in the Fire Service and the youngest is still at school!"

"And you're twenty-seven?"

"Twenty-five!" Arthur corrected

"What was the cause of your father's death?" Matthew began making notes.

"Same as mine!" Matthew definitely made a note of that.

"Brain?" he asked, thinking of Arthur's episode the night before.

"No! War!"

"When?"

"1917," Amelia sat silently, wondering about all these questions but figured her brother knew what he was doing.

"Were you called up?"

"No, volunteered," Arthur replied. "Trained in Canada, went on ops in '41."

"Bombers?" Matthew asked.

"For a while," Arthur answered. "Spell as instructor, back to bombers. Lancasters!"

"Must have been on a lot of operations," Matthew commented.

"67!"

"I'm surprised they let you go with your experience!"

"New job!" Arthur clarified. "Master bomber!"

"Tough job?" Arthur shrugged.

"Someone has to do it!"

"About these headaches," Matthew asked. "When did they begin?"

"Headaches?" Arthur tried to sound nonchalant but there was a look in his eyes of someone who was being caught out. Matthew suspected because of the severe one Arthur had suffered the night before but this confirmed that he had been having them for some time.

"I know you have them," Matthew replied. "I know you've had them for a while and kept them secret! Especially from the MO. I also know about your eyes!" The fact that the headache hit Arthur behind the eyes was significant. Arthur began to feel defensive.

"You know a lot," Matthew felt Arthur was withdrawing.

"I'd like to know more," he replied. "I need to know more if I'm going to help you. Now when did these headache start?" Arthur sighed.

"Six months ago!"

"Bad?"

"Not at first!"

"Where?" Arthur put his hand on his head off centre toward the right. Matthew made another note.

"Frontal and temporal," he said, matter-of-factly. "Ever had a bang on the head?"

"I might have been dropped on my head as a baby but not that I can remember!" Both Matthew and Amelia chuckled.

"I get the feeling I've spoilt whatever you were thinking about," Arthur commented.

"You have, actually," Matthew replied. "Do you mind if I try something?" Matthew stood up. He turned Arthur's chair so he was facing the girl dressed as Titania. "Keep your eyes forward! Now, what can you see?"

"The pretty girl in the Titania costume," Arthur replied and Amelia felt a little twinge of jealously. Matthew nodded.

"Don't take your eyes off her!" he ordered.

"Won't be difficult!" Amelia's lips tightened. Matthew was sure Arthur knew the effect he was having on Amelia and was teasing her a little.

"Without moving your eyes," Matthew said. "What can you see on the furtherest right?"

"Fireplace!"

"And on the left?" Arthur frowned. The left seemed a little cloudy and everything was slightly out of focus.

"Windows?" Arthur was not very sure.

"Anything else?"

"Curtains?"

"Colour?"

"Red!" That Arthur was sure about! Matthew patted him on the shoulder.

"That will do!" he said and went to sit back down again. Amelia decided she was not going to be ignored any more.

"Well, if you're quite finished, staring at that girl...!" Arthur's face took on a teasing smirk.

"You have to do what the doctor tells you!" he quipped.

"No loss of appetite or decrease in thirst?" Matthew asked, jotting things down again.

"No," Arthur replied.

"In fact, you been eating and drinking more than normal," it was not a question.

"Have you been looking at my mess bills?" Arthur joked.

"And you've seen something?" Matthew's voice went back to serious.

"Someone!" Arthur clarified.

"Clearly?"

"As clearly as I can see you!"

"Ever had a similar hallucination?"

"No, thank you!"

"Do you believe in the survival of the human personality after death?" Matthew asked.

"I thought you'd read my poetry!" Matthew turned to Amelia.

"What about you, Amelia?" Amelia was surprised at the question.

"I've never really thought about it," she admitted. "What about you?"

"A little," Matthew replied. "Maybe too much, I don't know! One last question!" he turned back to Arthur. "Have you ever smelt something that couldn't possibly be there?" Arthur looked surprised.

"How did you know?"

"So you have?"

"Yes," Arthur admitted. "But it's so stupid, I never would have mention it!"

"Arthur," Matthew replied. "The smallest thing could be important and tell us everything we need to know!"

"It won't tell me how I could jump out of a plane without a parachute and still be alive!"

"No," Matthew admitted. "But there's bound to be an explanation for that. Now, this Heavenly messenger! You said you saw him clearly! And this smell. Was it at the same time?"

"Yes! It was quite strong!"

"Pleasant smell?"

"Yes!"

"What was it?" Arthur gave a small laugh.

"Fried onions!" Matthew wrote that down.

"This messenger! Has he turned up again?"

"No but he will," Arthur replied. "He picks his own time. And freezes it!"

"Arthur's lodged an appeal," Amelia said.

"Against?" Matthew asked.

"His call-up!"

"Good!" Matthew replied. "Don't give in!"

"I won't!" Arthur promised.

"I've got bad news for you," Matthew warned. "You're being re-billeted to my house. For two reasons!"

"Which are?" Arthur asked.

"One, I want to meet this man the next time he drops in," Matthew replied. "Two, I'd like my sister to drop by more often and she will if you're there."

"What about my CO?"

"I've squared it with him," Matthew said. "Until we sort this. I'm your CO! And at my house, we have tea at five!"

"TEA BREAK!" Some privates raced in with a tea trolley piled with teacups and pastries and everybody gathered around, trying to get the best first.

"Here we get it at five-thirty!" Amelia declared with a laugh as she went to grabbed some tea and doughnuts for her brother and Arthur.

Matthew looked back over his notes and then put them away with a thoughtful expression.

* * *

Arthur had been in Matthew's cottage for a few days and his favourite room was Matthew's library, surrounded by books, not just on the shelves but on the desk, tables, even on the floor. He could sit in a chair and not move, even to get a book as many were within reaching distance. The days had been filled with medical tests, discussions with Matthew about his poetry and visits from Amelia. Matthew watched the romance between Arthur and his sister and, while he approved of Arthur as a suitor, he was worried about how Arthur's state of health would affect Amelia, should it take a turn for the worse.

Arthur was in the library, asleep in the comfortable armchair while Matthew and Amelia were out in the garden, playing on the table tennis table that Matthew had set up and both were deep in competition.

"Ah ha!" Amelia laughed as Matthew's shot hit the little fence, stretched across the table. "Another one to me!" Matthew grabbed the ball and got ready to serve.

"Ready?" he asked, hit the ball and it went back and forth again. It continued until Matthew missed and the ball sailed passed him.

"I wondered if Arthur's a good player," Amelia said, looking through the window at his sleeping form as Matthew went after the ball.

"Ask him when he wakes up," Matthew replied.

"He's been asleep for two and a half hours!"

"He'll wake at eleven!"

"How do you know?"

"I gave him a sleeping tablet," Matthew replied. He felt it was best if Arthur got as much rest as he could.

"How can you tell?" Amelia would be amazed if Matthew could time it that precisely.

"I can't tell exactly," Matthew admitted. "But I know the patient!"

"But do you know him?" Amelia asked. She had only know Arthur for about a week or two and she could not know him well in that time. Matthew had known him even less than that.

"I think I do," Matthew told her, confidently. "I think he's fascinating!"

"So do I!" Amelia replied, with a cheeky quirk of he eye brow.

"Medically, not biologically!" Matthew said, reproachfully as they went into the library. He poured them both a drink while Amelia looked over the open medical encyclopedias that littered his desks.

"What do your books tell you, Mattie?" she asked. A serious look crossed Matthew's face.

"I see a dark stranger in his life," he replied, like a fortune-teller predicting doom. Amelia went over to Arthur, picked up the blanket that had fallen off his legs and put it back over him.

"What's wrong with him, Mattie?" Amelia sounded worried. "Do you know?"

"I think I do," Matthew said. He hoped he was wrong but he did not think so.

"Will he be all right?"

"He'll be fine," Matthew prayed he was not giving his sister false hope.

"Will he have any more hallucinations?"

"Yes!" Matthew sounded sure. "This collector fellow said he'd be back."

"Will it make him any worse?"

"Why should it?"

"I don't know." Amelia replied, her voice betraying her worry. "Seeing things, questioning his own survival, talking to someone who isn't there ….."

"To Arthur, he is!" Matthew said.

"He's not going mad, is he?" now Amelia was worried. "His brain's not being affected?"

"Yes, it is!" Matthew replied. "But not the way you think! That's why I asked him about his sense of smell."

"I did wonder about that!"

"He's suffering from highly complex hallucinations, mirroring real life," he said. "A neurologist would start looking for a connection to smell or taste. If it's there, we know where to look. I need to find out one more thing about his medical history and I should find that out soon."

"But how did he survive the jump from the bomber?"

"I don't know," Matthew replied. "It would help if we could find a reason for that but the main thing is for him to win his case!" Amelia was surprised that Matthew was taking this business seriously.

"Are you serious?"

"Very!" Matthew said. "He has to win his case! How depends on what message this collector brings!"

"But what if he loses his case?"

"If it looks like he's losing his case, we'll find out a reason why he survived," Matthew answered. "Even if we have to make one up! Fancy another game?" Amelia looked at Arthur.

"Don't worry!" Matthew reassured him. "See that bell!" He pointed to a silver bell that stood on the table near Arthur's chair. "He's promised to ring it if this collector person comes back. Now, about that game!"

"I'll beat you again!" she declared as she raced back outside with Matthew following her.

"No, you won't!" They went back into the gardens and picked up their paddles. The ball shot back and forth and they won a game each. They started the next game and they hit the ball back and forth toward each other and then.

The ball froze in mid-air! In fact, everything froze!

Amelia was stuck in the position of having hit the ball while Matthew was frozen, ready to hit the ball back and not a thing had moved.

In the library, Arthur's nose began to twitch as the smell of fried onions drifted into his nostrils and his eyes drifted open.

"Bonjour, mon ami!"

 **Yes, he's back! And he brings news! And Matthew's here! I wanted to have all the Nordics in but, to be in keeping with the history of the war, I could only get Norway and Denmark in as Finland was with the Axis, in conflict with Russia, Sweden was neutral and Iceland was neutral, allied held territory so I'm afraid it's just the two of them!**

 **To takuya** **– I'm so pleased! :) Not so much ripples in the space/time continuum, more in the law and order of Heaven but Arthur's situation will still cause an uproar, trust me! ;)**

 **To Maveriqua** **– No, I wouldn't have called it Natural Death either! :( True or maybe that they would have some kind of super power to find the souls they're sent for but apparently that's not the case, luckily for Arthur! :D**

 **To Normandy** **– I'm not sure Amelia thinks he's crazy, more that there's something wrong and even Matthew thinks that there's a medical reason for Arthur's 'hallucinations' but that's the Big Question! Is it a symptom of a medical problem or is Arthur really being called up by Heaven? O_o You decide!**

 **To Scarlet Phantom** **– Welcome back! :) Yeah, I haven't used a lot of nyo! characters and never as one of the main ones so I thought I'd have a go and Nyo! America seemed to fit the time period and situation better! Gaia, being the Greek version of Mother Earth, fitted the role of Head of the Records Department because she's in charge of the files of everybody on Earth so I just went Ancient Greece, Another one of the ancients will be showing up later! As for Paris, there are no words! T_T**

 **To ArtemisIsis13** **– No, it isn't! :( And an Heavenly messenger saying 'Oops! You were supposed die last night but I missed you, would you mind coming with me now?' would take anyone by surprise! Francis was the one who missed Arthur so if he couldn't get Arthur to come back with him, he was the one who was going to get the slapped wrist! XP I've never actually seen all of** ** _It's a Wonderful life!_ But I've seen enough to know about the _Every time a bell rings, an angel gets his wings_ bit. And you're right to be concern for Arthur's health as you'll soon see! DX**

 **Next week, Arthur gets news about his appeal from Francis and Matthew gets news about Arthur's medical history and worries about his worsening condition as Arthur struggles to pick a Defence Consul!**

 **So till next time,**

 **Hasta la Pasta!**


	5. Right to Appeal!

**Back again! Christmas is coming up and I think I've got an idea for my Christmas story :) Let you know how it works out! Until then, back to this story, enjoy!**

 **I don't own Hetalia or _A Matter of Life and Death!_**

 _ **Chapter 5 : Right to Appeal**_

Arthur kept his eyes on Francis standing in the corner as he reached for the bell on the table beside him. Francis just watched as Arthur grasped the bell, knowing what the result would be. Arthur shook the bell but there was no sound. He rang it as hard as he could but still silence. Arthur threw the blanket to one side and leaped out of his chair, hitting a table loaded with books and knocking it over. There was no sound as table and books hit the ground while Arthur raced outside.

"Matthew!" he called. "He's here!" He ran into the garden, calling out to the Canadian only to find both Matthew and Amelia frozen in place on with side of the table with the ball floating in mid-air. He waved his hand in front of Matthew's face but there was no reaction. Amelia did not react either.

Back inside the library, Francis looked down at the upended table and waved his hand. The table flew back into place and the books landed back on it with the exception of one which flew into Francis's hand, a book on chess!

Arthur wandered back into the library, having been unable to rouse either Matthew or Amelia, to see what Francis had to say. When he went back in, Francis was sitting in his chair, reading the book.

"Bonjour, Angleterre! " he greeted. "Et comment allez-vous aujourd'hui? ( _And_ _how are you, today?_ )."

"Not too good," Arthur admitted. Francis gave him a sympathetic look.

"Sorry to hear that, mon ami!" he commiserated. Arthur reached for the bell again. "I wouldn't bother with the bell, nothing will happen. You remember my little trick, non?" He turned a page in the book. "This looks good! Very good, in fact! I often like a game with Philidor."

"Philidor?"

"A great chess-master!" Francis declared. "French, naturellement! Come with me, I'll introduce you!" Arthur smiled.

"Good!" he replied.

"Splendid!" Francis perked up.

"No!" Arthur said. "You've got good news for me! If you didn't, you wouldn't be trying to entice me with this Pilamore..."

"Philidor!"

"If you had the right to collect me," Arthur completed.

"True!" Francis admitted. "I officially have good news for you."

"Good!"

"You are allowed to appeal to the High Court," Francis announced. "It will be a full dress affair to held in three days to give you time to prepare your case,"

"This gets better!"

"Don't celebrate just yet, mon cher!" Francis warned, getting out of the chair and coming to Arthur's side. "You should prepare yourself for a shock!"

"Why?" Arthur was on guard now.

"The Prosecuting Consul," Francis said. "Is …... Jacob Blake!"

Arthur blinked. Who? Francis wondered why Arthur looked confused.

"Jacob Blake!" he emphasised. The confused look did not leave Arthur's face.

"I've never heard of him," he replied.

"Jacob Blake died in Boston in 1775," Francis explained. "Does that tell you anything?" Arthur thought over the history he had learn.

"Lexington, Concorde!" Arthur caught on. "The American War of Independence! He was killed ..."

"By a British bullet!" Francis filled in the rest. "The first American to die in the conflict!" Arthur realised what Francis was getting at. This Jacob Blake had died at British hands so he was going to fight this case with everything he had.

"He going to be prejudiced toward me!" Arthur stated the obvious. Francis gave a mirthless laugh.

"He hates your guts!" he said in no uncertain terms. "He hates the guts of every Englishman and he hates this little affair with an American-born girl!" Arthur was incensed at the accusation that he would use Amelia in such a way. He was a gentleman!

"This is not a little affair!" he denied, hotly.

"Ah! A big affair!" Francis replied. "He'll hate that even more! And appealing the appointment won't do any good. They appointed the best man to uphold the honour of the Department of Records so what you need is to do is appointment a good man for yourself!"

"Defence consul?" Arthur mused. "Can I choose anyone?"

"Anyone in the other world," Francis's replied. "Anyone who has ever lived on Earth, anyone at all! But don't waste any time, Jacob Blake is building his case as we speak. You can choose from the greatest minds that have ever lived! Socrates! William Pitt! …..."

"I'll give it some thought," Arthur replied. Francis tapped the chess book.

"May I borrow this?" he asked.

"It doesn't belong to me," Arthur replied. "That's Doctor Williams's book!" Francis tutted.

"Doctors!" he said with a note of derision.

"What's wrong with doctors?"

"They give me a lot of trouble with my work!"

* * *

The ball began moving through the air and was hit back toward Amelia by Matthew and Amelia had just hit it back when they heard the bell ringing. They dropped their paddles and went quickly to the library. When they went in, Arthur was sat in the chair, clutching his head and Matthew guessed that Arthur had had another hallucination.

"Was he here, Arthur?" he asked, urgently. Arthur looked up at him.

"Yes!" he replied, jumping up and moving to a corner of the room. "He was right here! And these were on the floor!" He knocked the books off the table that he knock over before. Matthew grabbed his shoulders.

"Sit down, Arthur!" he ordered and Arthur obeyed and clutched his pain-riddled head again. Matthew pulled his hands away and examined Arthur's eyes. "You been doing something stressful. You and the collector have been having a heavy discussion! I hope you didn't give in to anything!"

"Not a chance!" Arthur declared.

"Good!" Matthew continued to examine Arthur and did not like what he was seeing.

"Can I stay overnight, Mattie?" Amelia asked. Arthur was clearly getting worse and she did not want to be too far away from him. Matthew nodded.

"I have Mrs Mason make up the guest room," he said.

"Matthew!" Arthur said. "I want to stay with these books. Can I stay in here tonight?"

"I'll have a camp bed made up," Matthew replied and left to make arrangements.

"Amelia!" Arthur said. "I'm allowed to appeal!" He cupped Amelia' cheek. "I don't want to leave you!"

"And you're not going to!" Amelia said with conviction. "It's going to be all right!"

"I need a good Defence Consul!"

"We'll find one!" Amelia replied, playing along with Arthur's delusion but she was afraid he was falling deeper and deeper into it. Then Matthew came back in with a glass of liquid, followed by Mrs Mason who was carrying bed linen. He gave the glass to Arthur.

"Drink this!" he ordered and helped him down the liquid.

"Arthur has the right to appeal," Amelia reported.

"Great!" Matthew replied. "Did you smell anything?" Arthur nodded. "The same? Fried onions?"

"Yes," he replied and winced against the light. Matthew closed the curtains to darken the room while Amelia put the blanket back over Arthur who suddenly shot up and look round.

"He took your book!" he exclaimed. "The book about chess!"

"Cheeky!" Matthew replied, pushing him back into the chair. "Now I need you to rest!"

"I need to talk to you," Arthur said to Matthew.

"Sleep now, talk tomorrow!" Matthew replied. "You'll feel better then."

"No!" Arthur said, adamantly. "It's about my Defence Consul! I don't think you believe what I'm seeing!"

"Yes, we do!" Amelia lied and Matthew bent down toward Arthur.

"I'm your Defending Consul on Earth," he said. "And, as your Consul, I believe everything you tell me!"

* * *

Two days later, Matthew went out to the base on his motorbike. The information he had been waiting for had arrived by telegram and he wanted to talk to one of the other doctors about it as Arthur was getting worse and Amelia was fretting herself sick.

It was pouring when he arrived, rain dripping from his biking jacket as he strolled into the infirmary and encountered one of his colleagues.

"Hello, Doctor Williams!" he greeted.

"Hello, Doctor Jackson," Matthew replied. "Is Doctor Anderson available?"

"He's just about to operate!" Matthew groaned. He needed to talk to Doctor Anderson now. "He hasn't started yet, I'll let him know you want to talk to him. He'll probably see you in the scrub-room."

"Thank you!" Matthew said and Jackson went to see Doctor Anderson.

* * *

Matthew paced the scrub-room, waiting for Doctor Anderson to arrive. He needed to talk to him now because, if he was right, time was running out for Arthur. Doctor Anderson came in, completely obscured in surgical garb, holding up his rubber-gloved hands and the door shut, indicating that someone had opened the door for him.

"Hello, Doctor Williams," he said. "What's happened?"

"He deteriorating fast!" Matthew replied. Doctor Anderson nodded. "We need to operate tonight!" Anderson frowned. They had a lot of operations to perform and he was not sure how many they could delay.

"We're swamped right now," he replied. "How sure are you of your diagnosis?"

"Very!" Matthew said. "I got the missing fact. Arthur Kirkland suffered concussion two years ago with no after effects but the x-ray was unclear. I've shown you the ocular reports and you're familiar with these highly organised hallucinations with a sense of smell. It all points to a retinal adhesion with an involvement with the olfactory nerve in the brain."

"It's a tricky operation," Anderson replied. "I've heard of it but I've never seen one preformed."

"I have, many times," Matthew told him. "In Paris! I made some notes your surgeon can review."

"It will be Doctor Smith!" Matthew mused on that. Doctor Smith was of Germanic descent, unusual on a base full of American soldiers but he was also one of the best neurosurgeons in the world and his only interest was in saving lives so his presence was accepted, if monitored.

"Smith," Matthew replied. "He's an excellent surgeon." Anderson shook his head.

"I just don't see how it can be done tonight," he said. "Surely, it can wait another day!"

"No!" Matthew was adamant about that. "It won't! I'm afraid his brain will be permanently affected if we leave it any longer."

"Insanity?"

"Yes!" Matthew replied. "His trial is fixed for tonight and he still doesn't have a defence consul. He spend all his time in my library and only speaks to me or my sister, I have to drug him to get him to sleep. The man has a fine mind but that's part of the problem, it's too good. A weak mind isn't strong enough to harm itself. Stupidity's saved many a mind from going mad! And he's had discussions with this 'heavenly messenger', hallucinations, of course, but they're so imaginative! I've been building up a picture of this other world, systems, laws and the like but here's the thing! He stays within his own imagination!"

"I don't follow."

"Nothing he invents is entirely fantastic," Matthew explained. "It's all logical. He survived something that no one would normally survive so he questions it and invents this heavenly trial to decide whether he should have died or not and the keystone to all this is that he wins or loses his case which is why I think we shouldn't wait and operate tonight!" Anderson shook his head again.

"It's no good shaking your head," Matthew said. "And we have to convince him of a defence consul or we could lose him!"

* * *

Arthur was asleep in the library again. In the past two days, he had been reading, reading his poetry to Amelia and talking with Matthew when his head did not hurt (which had been happening more and more and usually happened after visits by Francis to explain the rules and laws of the trial and to try and choose a Defence Consul). All other times he was sleeping, curtsey of sleeping draughts from Matthew.

How he found himself sitting on a stairway with Francis, he had no idea.

Everything was white and the stairway was lined with statues that Francis pointed out as possible defenders as they went past.

"What about him?" Francis asked as they passed the statue of a rather famous American president.

"Lincoln!" Arthur considered that for a moment. Abraham Lincoln would not let the fact that Arthur was British interfere with defending him but that man had already been through a war where American stood against American and he did not think it right to put him through something similar so he shook his head. "I don't think it's fair to drag him into this!" Francis shrugged and looked at another statue.

"How about being defended by Plato?" he suggested. "After all, he was the master of reason!"

"He was quite old when he die," Arthur mused. "So I'm not sure how important he would consider love, he might have have got over all that be then. Besides, I think he quoted Socrates when someone asked him if he could still appreciate a woman!"

"What did he say?" Francis really wanted to know.

"He said," Arthur replied. "'I'm only too glad to be rid of all that! It was like being in bondage to a raving madman!'" Francis huffed indignantly.

"These Greeks are as cold as their marble!" he declared. "You would not get such a response from a Frenchman! Richelieu, for example! How about Richelieu?" Arthur shook his head.

"Never liked him in The Three Musketeers," he replied. Francis put his chin on the heel of his hand and sighed, willing Arthur to find a defender to his liking.

"You have to choose someone!" he said. "You only have a few hours left to choose!"

"It's a good idea to have all these great people to choose from," Arthur explained. "But what do they know of the problems of today?" Francis had to admit that Arthur had a point, these men had not live in the world for centuries.

"True!" he concurred. "Not much!"

"Besides, I think it ought to be a Englishman or connected to England," Arthur said. "No one famous but someone with a good head on his shoulders." Francis nodded at the idea.

"This Jacob Blake," Arthur continued. "Was he a famous man?"

"He was the first American to be killed by a British bullet," Francis reminded him.

"But was he famous?" Arthur asked. "Like a philosopher or statesman?"

"He was a school-teacher," Francis replied. Arthur smiled.

"There you are!" he declared. "Someone like Plato would ….." Then he realised that something was wrong. It was almost like Francis was stalling.

"Why are you so interested in my winning my case?" he asked. Francis put his hand on his chest as if to say 'moi!' but it seemed exaggerated. Then Arthur noticed! He had thought the statues were going past them but he realised that they were going past the statues as the stairway climbed through the clouds. He stood up.

"Why is this stairway going up?" he demanded. "You're trying to trick me, aren't you!"

"How can you suggest such a thing!" Francis looked offended but Arthur did not care.

"You're not fooling me, you know," he declared. "And you don't get me that easily!" Arthur turned and began running down the stairs as fast as he could.

"ARTHUR!" Francis shouted after him but Arthur paid no attention as he tried to get down the stairway but it was like he was almost running on the spot and he ran faster. He made some headway but much not as much as he wanted. Francis was still shouting after him and it spurred him on. The bottom of the stairs was slowly coming toward him. Too slowly!

Dear Lord, they were going to get him!

 **Obviously Jacob Blake was not the first American to die in the Revolutionary War, I have no idea who that was, I couldn't find that information which is not surprising as recording that kind of information was pretty random back then so I made up a name. Anyone who read A 4th of July Carol might recognise the name Anderson. Arthur's medical condition, I got from the film as I know little to nothing about brain conditions. I'll let you guess who 'Doctor Smith' is although that should be fairly obvious.**

 **To Normandy** **– Yeah! Matt's going to be very helpful as the story goes on. As for the fried onion smell, it's either a symptom of Arthur's condition or Francis really does need a bath! XP**

 **To takuya** **– I hope you think this chapter's just as awesome! :) And this story will go to high places, trust me! ;)**

 **In the next chapter, Arthur finds his Defence Consul but at a cost. Everyone begins preparing for the trial and Arthur goes under the knife. Let's hope for a full recovery!**

 **Till next week,**

 **Hasta la Pasta!**


	6. Consul for the Defence!

**Time for the next chapter! Please don't kill me! Enjoy!**

 **I don't own Hetalia or _A Matter of Life and Death!_**

 _ **Chapter Six : Consul for the Defence**_

"Arthur!"

"Arthur!"

"Arthur!" Amelia's panicked voice cut across his consciousness and he found himself off the stairway, back in the chair in Matthew's library. He was covered in sweat and his head was splitting. Outside the rain that had plagued the land all day had built into a storm and he could hear it howling. Matthew came to his side, holding a hypodermic needle and gave him an injection as a clap of thunder boomed above their heads. After the injection, Arthur began to settle.

"He almost got me!" he muttered.

"He'll be all right soon," Matthew reassured Amelia and then added with frustration, "Where's the ambulance? It should have been here half an hour ago!" He turned to Amelia. "Go call Doctor Smith and tell him we must operate tonight, it's life or death! And tell them about the ambulance! Oh! And send a telegram to his brothers!" Amelia raced to do what Matthew told her to and Matthew went to see to Arthur who grabbed his arm.

"Where's Amelia?" Arthur demanded. He wanted to see Amelia!

"She's on the phone," Matthew replied. "She'll be back soon!"

"He almost got me!" Arthur said, again. Matthew nodded.

"So I see!" he replied.

"Sneaky frog!" Arthur gasped. "I barely got away!"

"Don't let anyone convince you to give up this case!" Matthew ordered. "You've been given the right to appeal, use it! You have a right to a fair trial so don't give in!"

"I have no consul!"

"We'll find someone!" Matthew replied. "The right man! They can't start your trial without your consul!" Matthew hoped that would convince Arthur to hold on long enough to get him to the base hospital.

"They might appoint someone!" Arthur muttered. "Some idiot that might throw the case! Or they might decide in favour of the opposition by default!"

"Nonsense!" Matthew did not like the way Arthur was talking. He had to get Arthur fighting back again. "We'll find someone, they can't start without your consul!" Matthew got up to see if Amelia had got through on the telephone. With the storm, a line could be down.

"Matthew!" Arthur called him back. "No one famous!"

"Absolutely not!" Matthew agreed. "That would be the worse thing!" If Arthur had to maintain the illusion of a famous person, that could push him over the edge. "What about a friend? Your cousin Kyle perhaps?" Imagining Kyle would not overtax Arthur's mind as he would be familiar with his cousin's mannerisms and personality. "Think it over!" And Matthew went to see if the ambulance was coming but Amelia came back in with Mrs Mason on her heels.

"I can't get through!" she said. "The phone's dead!"

"It's the storm, Doctor," Mrs Mason replied. "Storms always knocks the phone out!" Matthew cursed under his breath.

"I'll go on my bike!" Amelia declared. She had to get through somehow! Arthur's life depended on it but there was no way Matthew could allow that. His sister on a pedal bicycle in a full-blown storm! No way!

"No!" he said, adamantly. "I'll go on my motorbike, you're more valuable here! I need you to keep Arthur motivated! If the ambulance arrives, don't wait for me! If I meet it, I'll come back! Now, sit with Arthur and don't let him despair! His life is in your hands!" Amelia turned her worried face to her brother, her eyes bright with yet-to-fall tears. He gave her a reassuring kiss on her cheek.

"Everything will be fine!" he promised. "So be brave, eh!" She nodded and Matthew left the room. Amelia sat beside Arthur who grabbed her hand and held it like he would never let it go

* * *

Matthew ran into his garage in his biking jacket and leather helmet and goggles. He mounted his motorcycle while Mrs Mason moved to the doors to open them for Matthew and the wind blew her clothes around her and splattered her with rain. Matthew started his bike and the headlight lit up the darkness. Mrs Mason stood to one side as Matthew rode his bike into the wet blackness and she said a prayer for everything to be all right!

* * *

Amelia gently stroked Arthur's face, the sweat on his brow worrying her. He was getting worse and she was scared that she was going to lose him.

"Where's Matthew?"

"He'll be right back, sweetheart," Amelia promised.

"I need to talk to him!" Arthur said. "I don't think Kyle's quite right for my Consul!"

"I'll tell him," Amelia replied.

"You never met Kyle," Arthur continued. "He was my Australian cousin and Flight Engineer. He would have like you!"

"We'll find someone!" Amelia said with determination. "Matthew will come up with something, I know he will!"

"I hope he hurries!"

* * *

The storm-blown rain, combined with the speed of the bike, battered into Matthew and stung his face where he was unprotected by his goggles but he ignored it. What he could not ignore was the rain drops obscuring his vision and he wiped at his goggles, his headlight barely making a dent in the darkness but he continued along the rain-soaked lane as fast as he safely could but he was pushing it.

He had no choice! Arthur's life hung in the balance!

* * *

Lukas and Matthias had been assigned to the ambulance to bring in Squadron Leader Arthur Kirkland from Doctor Williams's cottage but they had been forced to find an alternative route when they found the main lane flooded. They had managed to get back on the main lane again and were racing down it, the ambulance's windscreen wipers flapping the raindrops away.

"We should have been there thirty minutes ago," Lukas said. Matthias huffed.

"It's not my fault the lane was washed out!" he said, peering into the night, trying to see the road. "Blame the English weather! There would have to be an emergency in the middle of a storm!"

"Let's just get there!" Lukas replied. "This sounds like a bad …...

…..LOOK OUT!"

* * *

The ambulance seemed to suddenly appeared in Matthew's headlight and he had mere seconds to react! He veered off to the left and missed the ambulance by centimetres but with no time to stop, he crashed through a field gate and flew through the air. His last sight before everything went black was of his beloved motorcycle in flames.

* * *

Matthias caught a glimpse of the rider as he turned the ambulance to the right, knowing he had only just missed him but, as he stopped the vehicle, he heard the sound of a crash. He turned to Lukas who was shaking him out of the shock of the close call.

"That was Doctor Williams!" he exclaimed and looked out of his side window to see fire, even in the rain, in the field across from them. Lukas got out of the ambulance, followed shortly by Matthias who took a moment to grab the ambulance's fire extinguisher. They ignore the rain and they ran into the field, Matthias using the extinguisher on the burning bike while Lukas ran to Matthew's slumped body to check him over. A combination of the extinguisher and the rain made short work of the fire and heaved a sigh of relief as he turned to look over at Lukas knelt over Matthew who slowly turned to look back at Matthias.

And shook his head.

* * *

Amelia was relieved to see the ambulance but it brought devastating news, delivered by a guilt-ridden Matthias and Lukas. Her sweet, beloved brother was gone! In the back was the shrouded body of her brother with the Danish and Norwegian drivers having to break the news of what happened. There had been nothing they could do for Matthew and they still had a emergency! Besides, they believed the Canadian doctor would want them to continue their assignment and get Arthur Kirkland to the base hospital to get the surgery he so desperately needed. Amelia wanted to fall apart and grieve for her brother but she would have to do that later because, right now, someone else needed her.

Arthur needed her.

They loaded Arthur on to the second stretcher and put him on the opposite side of the ambulance, the stretcher holding Matthew's body on the other side. While Matthias drove them back to the base, Lukas sat in the back, tending to Arthur with Amelia who was both caring for Arthur and grieving for Matthew.

"He never saw us until it was too late!" Lukas explained, giving the shrouded stretcher a glance. "He turned off to avoid hitting us. I feel awful about it, Doctor Matthews was a good man!"

"It wasn't your fault," Amelia replied, tears falling down her cheeks. She found that she could not blame Lukas or Matthias, it was just a tragic accident and what good would it do, it would not bring Matthew back! Lukas took Arthur's pulse.

"He was really interested in this case, wasn't he?" Lukas had heard things around the base, about the Squadron Leader who had leaped from a burning Lancaster bomber without a parachute into the English Channel and was washed ashore alive and how Doctor Williams had taken him in when he began to fall ill. Lukas was determined to do his part to finish what Doctor Williams started and get Arthur Kirkland where he needed to go to get the surgery he needed to save his life.

"Yes," Amelia replied, simply. She really was not up to talking much right now.

"All the doctors said that Doctor Williams's diagnosis was a fine piece of work," Lukas said. "I heard he left notes for the operation for Doctor Smith!" Amelia turned to the Norwegian driver.

"Doctor Smith is good, isn't he?" she asked. She had already lost one important person in her life. If she lost another, she did not think she could take it! Lukas nodded.

"He's one of the best!" he promised. Arthur began to stir.

"Matthew!" he gasped. Amelia squeezed his hand and Arthur squeezed back.

"I'm here, sweetheart," she said, gently.

"Where's Matthew?" Amelia fought to keep the tears from falling again and the sad look from her face.

"He's gone on ahead," she replied, which was true in a way but something must have shown on her face.

"He's had an accident, hasn't he!" Amelia looked at Lukas who shook his head to say that he had said nothing when they had collected Arthur, still conscious, from the cottage. Amelia turned back to Arthur and nodded.

"A bad accident," she replied, fresh tears falling from her eyes.

"Is he dead?" Amelia nodded again and more tears fell.

"Yes!" she said. "He's dead!" Arthur turned his head away and drifted back into unconsciousness again. Just then, the ambulance stopped and they were at the base hospital. The doors of the ambulance opened and orderlies climbed inside, taking Arthur's stretcher and carrying him out, making room for others to take Matthew to the Morgue while Arthur was rushed to the operating theatre. Amelia gave her brother one last look as they carried him away and then she followed Arthur.

Arthur watched the white ceiling pass over his head, sometimes interrupted by lights as he was swept into the operating theatre. He looked to the side and caught one last glimpse of Amelia before the door cut off sight of her. He vowed he would see her again, that he would not let this Heavenly trial separate them, no matter what!

Two nurses stood over Arthur in the operating theatre as they prepared him for surgery.

"Is this the cranial case, sister?" one of the nurses asked.

"Yes, nurse!" the other replied and looked down at Arthur. "We're ready for you, Squadron Leader." Arthur drifted off again.

* * *

He woke again just as they were ready for surgery with a big light over his head and people moving around him. A nurse prepared the surgery tray while the anaesthetist checked his equipment and other medical staff got everything they might need ready. Amelia was watching from the windows in the doors as a nurse began to prep his head for the operation. She could not help but worry that Arthur would not come out of this.

Doctor Smith, completely swathed in surgical garb and mask, with only his pale blue eyes showing, came into the theatre and they were ready. The anaesthetist brought the mask down over Arthur's nose and mouth, making him breathe in the consciousness-stealing gas. His eyes slowly closed and he finally sank into oblivion.

* * *

Francis was waiting as the new arrivals came in, waiting for a certain person who had been chosen for a special task. Then he spotted who he was there to meet. A man in his seventies, carrying a book, was leading an attractive young man in his twenties, dressed in a motorcycle jacket with violet eyes and blond hair with a stray curling strand. He approached the couple with a purpose.

"Doctor Williams!" he greeted. Matthew turned to the Frenchman dressed in clothes of the eighteenth century and suspected that he had just met Arthur's collector.

"Yes?" he asked. The Frenchman handed him a book. His book on chess.

"I believe this is yours," Francis said, confirming that he was the one who was sent for Arthur. "I shall introduce you to Philidor." He turned to the old man. "This is a special case, mon ami. The Court of Appeal. I'll take him from here." The old man opened the book he was carrying and Francis signed it, taking responsibility for Matthew.

"Good luck, my young friend!" the man said to Matthew and left. Francis indicated for Matthew to follow him.

"A good man!" Francis praised. "He was a countryman of yours at one time!"

"Oh!" Matthew replied. "Who was he?"

"Alexander... ah!"

"Alexander Graham Bell!" Matthew replied, snapping his fingers.

"And how is dear Arthur?" Francis asked. Matthew gave him a considering look.

"He has a fighting chance!" he declared. He was not going to show any doubt in front of this man.

"Oh ho!" Francis simply said and took him to the court of appeal.

* * *

Francis took Matthew before Gaia who was surrounded by everyone involved with the current issue, including Kyle Kirkland who was stood to the side. Francis gave a little bow.

"Doctor Matthew Williams," he introduced.

"Doctor Williams," Gaia said. "I believe that you're familiar with the case concerning Squadron Leader Arthur Kirkland."

"I am," Matthew replied. He had a feeling that he knew why he was there.

"He's chosen you to be his Defending Consul!" Matthew smiled.

"I hoped he would!"

"And you accept?" she asked.

"I do!"

"What facilities do you need?"

"I would like to see my client," Matthew replied. "And get instructions from him." He noticed a young man in a flight uniform with eyebrows, not quite as big as Arthur's but still big, desperately trying to get his attention and made a guess as to his identity.

"And I also would like to enlist Flight Engineer Kyle Kirkland as a assistant," he added. Kyle smiled.

"Of course!" Gaia agreed and turned to Francis. "Escort Doctor Williams to Squadron Leader Arthur Kirkland!" Francis bowed.

"I suggest you work quickly, Doctor!" Gaia advised. "You have very little time. Use it well!"

 **The lanes around Hetalia House are not the only places flooding in good old England, Carlisle turned into Venice over the weekend and other places have been flooded too and there's more to come. I'm in a safe area, fortunately and I'M SORRY! I'M SORRY! DDDX I didn't want to bump Matthew off but Arthur needed a Defence Consul and it was in the film! Alexander Graham Bell was born in Scotland, moved to Canada and finally became an American citizen hence, being a 'countryman' of Matthew's for a while. And now Matthew is Arthur's Defence Consul and I realise I've made Matthew somewhat Ooc because, trust me, no one's going to ignore him.**

 **To Maveriqua** **– No! Not Doctor 'Who' Smith! But here's a clue! Smith is not his real name but part of it means Smith in his country. ;P Now that's the riddle! Is it Arthur's condition making him hallucinate as everyone thinks or is he really fighting to stay alive on Earth? O_o You decide!**

 **To Normandy** **– Yeah, he's in a spot of bother all right! And yes! I'm a Brit but don't imagine me with a posh accent because that, I definitely don't have! :D**

 **Next week, the Trial begins and Matthew fights for Arthur's life! But he's up against a tough opponent when he finally meets Jacob Blake and Amelia waits to see if Arthur's surgery is successful.**

 **And from a Storm Desmond ravaged country,**

 **Hasta la Pasta!**


	7. The Court of Appeal

**YES! This story is finished! I've got the last chapter done and that will be up next week so this is the penultimate chapter. My Christmas story is also done so look out for that next week too!**

 **Additional Characters**

 **The Judge - Germania**

 **François Bonnefoy – 2p! France**

 **Viktor Bogdanov – 2p! Russia**

 **Wang Yao – China**

 **Ranjid Saddig – India**

 **Henri Picard – Picardy**

 **Ivan Braginski – Russia**

 **Wang Chung-yan – Nyo! China**

 **Ayushi Meela – Nyo! India**

 **Enjoy!**

 **I don't own Hetalia!**

 _ **Chapter 7 : The Court of Appeal**_

Amelia watched as the medical staff in the theatre worked on the man who had come to mean so much to her. She had lost her brother, she could not stand the thought of losing Arthur too. Doctor Smith's hands worked like a artist's, using his scalpel like a brush as he performed his life-saving surgery on Arthur. Amelia went to brush her hair from the side of her face and then …..

Everything froze!

Matthew and Francis appeared in the operating theatre among the medical team while Kyle got a good look at the girl that had Arthur digging his heels in. Francis made his way to the head of the operating table.

"Arthur!" he called. "Arthur!" Arthur appeared from under the sheet and became fascinated with seeing his own body on the table but Francis waved at him to follow and they went to the doors and walked straight through them.

"Kyle!" Arthur exclaimed at seeing his deceased Australian cousin who hugged him. "It's good to see you!"

"Great to see you too, Arthur," Kyle replied. "You've been causing quite a bit of trouble upstairs, you know."

"I never expected to ever see you again," Arthur said. "Down here or up there!"

"You can thank Doctor Williams for that," Kyle replied.

"I commandeered him as my assistant," Matthew explained. "Now we need to talk!" Arthur indicated to the operating theatre.

"They won't notice I'm gone, will they?" he asked. Francis laughed.

"Not for a moment, mon ami!" he replied. Matthew looked through the door windows at Doctor Smith in mid-cut.

"He's good!" he said. "Very neat! You're in good hands, Arthur! Now then ….."

"I know what you're going say," Arthur interrupted him. "Yes, I'm quite sure I want you to be my defending consul."

"I could be in over my head," Matthew warned but Arthur shook his head.

"I have every faith in you," he replied, adamantly.

"If he starts spouting politics, I'm done for!"

"Tell me who wouldn't be! Say yes, Matthew! Please!"

"He has no choice, mon cher," Francis said.

"Then why are we arguing?" Arthur asked. Matthew shrugged.

"Alright!" he said. "We'll need evidence in our favour. Something that shows that this is Love and not just infatuation!" Arthur waved them over to Amelia.

"Just look at her," he replied and all of them turned to stared at the frozen Amelia.

"She looks like a nice girl!" Kyle exclaimed. Matthew huffed.

"Well, don't sound too surprised!" he said. "She's my sister, of course she's a nice girl!" Kyle gave an apologetic grin. Arthur just stared into Amelia's sky blue eyes.

"This is the girl I love," he replied. "Her accent is different to mine but I love it. We were born an ocean apart but we were always meant to meet!"

"Very poetic!" Matthew said with a soft smile. Arthur blushed.

"Sorry!"

"The language of Love, mon ami," Francis replied. "No need to be ashamed!"

"I want to kiss her," Arthur said. "Just in case!"

"She will not feel it, mon cher."

"Doesn't matter," Arthur moved forward and brushed his lips over Amelia's. Francis sighed. So English! Why kiss a girl if she can't feel it? Arthur stood back and Francis spotted something.

"Look!" he exclaimed. "The evidence you wanted!" He pointed to Amelia's face. A tear glistened by her eye and began to fall. It should not have happened while Amelia was frozen! Was this love great enough to break through the time freeze? It was compelling evidence indeed!

Matthew saw the tear as well, including the implications.

"I wish I could take it with me," he said.

"You can do as you wish," Francis declared. "It's your right as consul!" Kyle frowned.

"How can we take a tear?" he asked. Francis took the rose out of his lapel and put it gently to Amelia's cheek where the tear transferred to one of the petals.

"I hope this is enough," Matthew said. "It's the only real evidence we have!"

* * *

Arthur returned to unconsciousness on the operating table while Matthew, Kyle and Francis hurried back to Heaven to get ready for the trial. It was a full regalia affair and Francis was garbed in eighteen century court dress as he gently put the rose down on the evidence table on the defence platform.

The seating in the Heavenly court room went on into the distance but there was not an empty seat anywhere. Nurses, soldiers, sailors, airmen, people from every century, some hoping for a favourable decision for the Records Department but more than a few were on Arthur's side, the romance of it all appealing to many.

On the other side of the courtroom was an identical platform where the prosecuting consul would stand and, between these two platforms was a third one with two levels. On the first level were six seats, before which four people of differing nationalities from differing centuries stood and on the top level was a single chair, square and made of white marble, ready for a special occupant.

Everyone stood up as a figure in robes made his way up to the top level. He had long blonde hair with a thin braid on each side. He sat in the chair and arranged his robes as everyone else sat down as well.

"The Court of Appeal," the judge announced, with a German accent but it was old German from centuries ago. "Is here to consider the case of The Department of Records vs Squadron Leader Arthur Alfred Kirkland of the British Royal Air Force! He claims negligence and superior rights and responsibilities arising from said negligence. He's appealing for remission of the date of his term on Earth and for his case to be examined. It has been decided to allow this appeal and it is up to the jury to decided if it should be successful." He looked down at the jury.

"Members of the Jury," he ordered. "Consider only the facts and be lead only by your conscience. The Consul for the Prosecution will take his place!"

All eyes turned to the platform for the prosecution as men in robes filed into view. They separated and another man came from behind them. Jacob Blake was a tall man with black hair and deep blue eyes but the thing that really stood out was he was wearing the blue uniform of the Revolutionary War.

The judge turned toward the other platform.

"The Consul for the Defence will take his place!"

Matthew stepped out alone and stood beside the table bearing the rose, taking a deep breath to steady his nerves. He just hoped he did not let Arthur down.

Jacob Blake looked across at his opponent. It made sense that the Canadian doctor would defend the Englishman. They were, or had been, friends, the young American girl the Englishman claimed to love was Williams's half-sister, Canada still had connections with Britain and the two countries were allies in the current conflict as was America but his last moments on Earth were still clear in his mind. The sight of British uniforms, the sound of the shot, the pain of the bullet, his death!

The Judge turned back to Jacob.

"I call on the prosecution to open the case!"

Jacob took of his hat in respect, giving it to one of his attendants and stepped forward.

"Your Honour!" he began, looking at the Judge and then the Jury. "Members of the Jury! There are three points to this case. Arthur A Kirkland, _an Englishman_ , should have died on the 2nd of May. Due to an error, which I must say is not typical of a great service." And he bowed to the representatives of the Records Department. "The defendant did not die! Therefore, point one! Who is responsible? When informed that he must report some twenty hours later, he refused, claiming that, in the borrowed time, that he had taken on new and permanent responsibilities. He claimed that, in those twenty hours, he had fallen with a young lady, _of good American stock_ , and that she had fallen in love with him. So, point two! Are we to believe this? And he also states that in these twenty hours which he had borrowed …..." Matthew decided to intervene.

"Your Honour," he interrupted. "I object to the word _borrowed!_ To borrow is to be given temporary use of something without being the true owner! My client wasn't given this time without being the true owner, he was the true owner of his own life." The Judge nodded to acknowledge this point which pleased Matthew. The _borrowed_ comments were subtle attempts to convince everyone that Arthur was on Earth when he should have been in Heaven. A way of swaying the Jury.

"The next points," Jacob continued. "Are, is this young _Englishman_ in love with this young lady _of good American stock_ and, more importantly, is she in love with him?" Matthew decided to bring up another issue.

"Why do you stress their nationalities?"

"Because it is relevant, sir," Jacob replied. "We are talking about Love!"

"It can happen between an Englishman and an American girl," Matthew pointed out. In the audience, an American airman who was sat by the stairs between sections, looked across at a young woman in a British Army uniform and said, "And visa versa!"

"True," Jacob acknowledged. "But what are these feelings of Love in another country, Doctor Williams? Men and women away from their homes and families, homesick and longing for companionship. Bright brief sparks instead of enduring flames! The Love of the Moment, Doctor! Is that Love or merely infatuation? How many of these end in lasting marriage? Maybe one in ten thousand!"

"And that is my case, sir," Matthew declared. He had to admit, Jacob made good points so Matthew had to make to the point that, since True Love was so rare, they should be careful not to throw it away without careful consideration.

"That, sir, you have to prove!" Jacob declared. "When our men and women came to Britain to be allies, it was not to be subjugated!" Matthew snorted. This man was clearly still stuck in the Revolutionary War, the world had moved on. As Jacob pointed out, Britain and America were now allies.

"May I point out," Matthew replied. "We are living in the twentieth century, not the eighteen!"

"May I pointed out," Jacob retorted. "We are not alive at all!" Matthew had to admit Jacob had him there.

"Good point!" he conceded.

"And I am aware of the changing times," Jacob disputed. "I've been watching Britain from up here! The wars, politics and activities! Would you say that Arthur A Kirkland is a good English man?"

"Yes. I would!" Matthew said with conviction. One of Jacob's assistants brought a box and he took out a glass and held it up.

"This is the glass from which Benedict Arnold drank the health of George III," Jacob announced and let it drop to the floor where it smashed. "Does it break because it's damaged or just glass?" He took a sheet of paper and tore it in half. "Can I tear this paper because it's defective or just paper? We are as we were made but our ancestors have had influence in shaping us too."

"The Jury will note that I quite agree," Matthew replied. "May I ask where Mr Blake's grandfather was born?" Jacob stayed silent.

"Could it be England?" Matthew asked with a slight smile. Jacob's lips tightened.

"He left because he didn't like it!" he replied. "He would not have liked it any better today!" Another assistant brought a radio to Jacob who turned it on. A man was droning on about a cricket match and Matthew had to admit it sounded very boring.

"The voice of England in the present day!" Jacob declared, interrupting the boring commentary. "Is this an English voice, sir?" Matthew did not know what to do to counter this tactic until Francis appeared at his side, also with a radio and Matthew smiled.

"The voice of America in the present day!" he announced and turned the radio on.

 _Shoo, shoo, shoo baby!_

 _(Wah!)_

 _Shoo, shoo, shoo baby!_

 _(Wah!)_

 _Bye, bye, bye baby!_

 _(Wah!)_

 _Your Papa's off to the seven seas!_

Jacob just looked at the radio, perplexed. What was that? Was it really American?

"I don't understand a word!" he admitted. Matthew turned off the radio and smiled.

"Neither do I!" Matthew replied. "But for England, I'm willing to call Pope, Wordsworth, Shakespeare …." Matthew rhymed off the greatest of English writers and poets, all of whom were acknowledged even in America. Jacob waved his hand.

"I conceded your point," he said.

"And Arthur Kirkland!"

"Is he a poet?" Jacob asked.

"He's made a beginning," Matthew replied. "So he could be, given the chance!"

"That is what we are here to decide!"

"I can't argue with that!"

* * *

The anaesthetist watched carefully over the anaesthetising equipment as it kept Arthur unconscious while Doctor Smith worked on the man on the operating table. Amelia watched as a nurse mopped Smith's brow then suddenly, the pump on the anaesthetiser began to work faster. Smith looked over at his anaesthetist who was checking the machine. Amelia's heart jumped into her mouth as the drama unfolded. Then the machine went back to normal rate and the anaesthetist nodded to Doctor Smith who resumed the operation while Amelia breathed a sigh of relief.

* * *

"Arthur Kirkland's character, just like everyone else's, has been formed by circumstances," Jacob declared. "By many connecting circumstances. Benjamin Franklin said _For want of a nail, the shoe was lost. For want of the shoe, the horse was lost. For want of a horse, the rider was lost. For want of a rider the message was lost. For want of a message,the kingdom was lost. And all for the want of a horse shoe nail!_ I take you've heard of Benjamin Franklin?" Jacob smiled, smugly.

"I say in George Washington's words," Matthew responded. " _Labour to keep in your heart, that little spark of celestial fire called conscious!_ "

"That could never have been said by a Englishman," Jacob claimed.

"What was George Washington?" Matthew pointed out. Born in an English colony, George Washington would have been considered originally English, something Jacob could not argue with.

"Are you saying that there's something wrong with my conscious?"

"Yes, I am!"

"Your Honour, I protest!" Jacob exclaimed. "I'm merely trying to give a true account to the Jury!"

"You're trying to prejudice the Jury against my client!" Matthew accused. Jacob just smiled.

"I don't need to!" he announced. "They're already prejudiced against Britain and they have good reason! Look closely at the members of the jury, Doctor!" Matthew looked toward the Jury. Each stood up to introduce themselves.

" _François Bonnefoy, French!_ " The first one who bore a resemblance to Francis announced. Francis almost groaned, François was an ancestor of his.

"Has there ever been a century when England and France have not quarrelled?" Jacob sounded smug. The next stood up.

" _Viktor Bogdanov, Russian!_ "

"The Crimean War, Doctor Williams!"

" _Wang Yao, Chinese!"_

"The English attack on China in 1857!"

" _Ranjid Saddig. Indian!"_

"India's interaction with the British Empire, Doctor!" Jacob said. "Need I say more? Choose a new jury from anywhere, they will always be against England!" Jacob smiled, smugly but Matthew surprised him

"Your Honour!" he said. "I wish to take the consul's advice and request that a new jury be chosen!"

"From where, Doctor Williams?" Jacob asked.

"You said from anywhere," Matthew replied.

"Not England!"

"Why not from England?" Matthew demanded, since Jacob had already made the case that people from any other country would let past grievances cloud their judgement, thereby making a fair trial for Arthur impossible. "Where else have the rights of the individual been valued?"

"In America!" Jacob declared. "Where these rights are held inalienable!"

"There's just as much freedom in England as in America," Matthew replied. "An Englishman think as he likes, in politics and religion!"

"An American lives in freedom from the moment he's born," Jacob declared. "He sups it with the milk from the beast of his mother! He see more from the top of Boston State House than from the top of anywhere else in the world. He sees no smoke or fog. A clear view from the sea to the New Hampshire mountains. America is the only place where man is full grown!"

Americans began to applaud this speech and Matthew wondered if they were ever going to get to the real issue of Arthur's life, rather than English culture vs American! The man's entire view was clearly coloured by his experience and death in the Revolutionary War but the world had moved on. Matthew gave Jacob another shock!

"Then I choose a Jury of Americans!" Now Brits began applauding. They did not know what the Canadian was doing but they suspected he had some plan. Jacob had not been expecting that but Matthew was not finished.

"Of Americans!" he clarified. "From every walk of life! But if one has fought in the War of Independence, I want one who has fought, as our ally in our current conflict! If the second has a mind entrenched in the past, I want the fourth to be looking to the future! I believe, no! I know that this Jury will judge this case, unprejudiced by past wrongs long forgotten by the modern world and will come to the right judgement!" Applause came from various nationalities at Matthew's passionate speech. "For I am fighting for the rights of the Common Man against the system!"

"But you are fighting against the law too, Doctor Williams," Jacob had to admit to being impressed by the Canadian's speech but he would not let it deter him from winning this case. "The Eternal Law of the Universe. Nothing is stronger than the law! On which the Universe is built!"

"This is not a Court of Law!" Matthew refuted. "It is a Court of Justice!" He turned to the Judge. "Your Honour, I ask for a Jury of American citizens!" The Judge turned to Jacob.

"Do you agree, Mr Blake?"

"It's a jury I would welcome, Your Honour!" The Judge looked down at the present jury.

"The Jury will please retire!" The Jury stood and vanished to be replaced by new jurors.

The Frenchman was replaced with another man brown hair and green eyes.

" _Henri Picard, American citizen!_ " he introduced himself with a trace of a French accent. The next man stepped forward.

" _Ivan Braginski, American citizen!"_ The silver haired, violet eyed man showed his Russian heritage. The next juror was a Chinese girl.

" _Wang Chung-yan, American citizen!"_ Matthew could see where this was going as the next juror stepped forward, another girl from India.

" _Ayushi Meela, American citizen!"_ Jacob looked smug while Matthew wondered if his tactic had backfired but he was still hopeful about the new jury's impartiality.

"The new jury may sit," the Judge ordered and they sat down. The Judge turned to Matthew.

"Begin your case, Defence Consul!" Matthew indicated to the rose on the table beside him.

"Here in this flower is my case!" he announced. "I must agree with the Prosecuting Consul. Has Arthur Kirkland fallen in love in the allotted extra ….."

"Borrowed, Doctor Williams!"

"Disputed extra twenty hours," Matthew clarified. "Or hasn't he? Has someone fallen in love with him? These two people would never have met, had a mistake by Higher Powers had not been made! They are being punished for doing something very natural! They fell in love! In the tear on this flower are love, truth and friendship! Those traits can create a new world and build a better one and that's what I'm fighting for and demand that Arthur Kirkland's life continue!" The jury huddled together to confer with each other. Ivan Braginski, who seemed to have become the spokesperson for the group, stood up.

"Your Honour!" he addressed the Judge. "The Jury feel that this girl and the defendant should be allowed to speak so we can hear this case from their respective!" Matthew felt hopeful at this turn of events. Amelia just might be able to convince them.

"Nothing's impossible," he said. The Judge and the rest of the Jurors stood up.

"The court will adjourn!"

And it was arranged to take the trial to Earth!

 **Having Ivan called himself an American citizen gave me a twisted little thrill X) There were no human names for Picardy and India that I could find so I made up my own! As much as Jacob insists that he had been keeping up with what had been happening on Earth, he still seems to be very much stuck in the past :( but, as he died at British hands he was bound to have a lingering resentment toward Arthur. We just have to hope he doesn't get in the way of True Love! :3**

 **To Normandy** **– Oddly enough, 'cheeky' isn't a word I use that often! It was in the film and I liked it :) Ah! Cork! I love the Irish accent, it has a charm all its own! :D I could never get into Monty Python myself but Doctor Who, Red Dwarf, those I love, even Horrible Histories is fun! XD I was a big reader myself, so much so that one teacher didn't believe I read so much and quizzed me on what I read. I got everything right but still he had trouble :( The Luci of the group, is she? Should I be worried for you? XP**

 **To takuya** **– I know! When I started writing the story I knew that was going to be Mattie's fate! :'( but, as the saying goes, he was headed for bigger things! Unfortunately, it was Matthew's time so the Universe is still demanding Arthur. Or, having heard about Matthew's death, Arthur's sub-conscious made Matthew a part of his hallucination as his Defence Consul. As for the identity of the doctor, you'll find out next week! ;)**

 **To ArtemsisIsis13** **– No problem! I've had to put Hetalia Tales 5:5 on hiatus for a while due to time commitments (Life, the Universe and that weird Christmas stuff) The weather has settled now so I'm not about to go out a buy a gondola! ;P Yeah! Writing that bit broke my heart but, as you see, it was a necessary part of the sorry but still, poor Mattie! :'( And poor Amelia, she's really gone through the mill! First Mattie and now the possibility of losing Arthur too! T_T Life is cruel! Blake's death has made him biased to the point he can't believe that a Brit and an American can be in love! :3 It's up to Matthew to convince him otherwise! I think you now know that the Doctor is not Germania, you'll find out next week if you are right. Strangely, despite the film taking place in WWII, the war doesn't really feature much and is just more of a back drop than an actual event in the story. So Beilschmidt means Axe Smith! You learn something new every day! XD**

 **Well, that's that for another week. Next week is Christmas Eve so I'll be updating on my birthday (Ugh! I hate being a Christmas baby!) The Court is taking the case to Earth! Can Arthur and Amelia convince them that they are in love and that Arthur should be allowed to live? Wait and see! I'll also be posting my Christmas story! I won't say the title, it'll give it away ;)**

 **So, till next week,**

 **Hasta la Pasta!**


	8. Judgement

**This is it, The Last Chapter and it's my birthday! Let's see how Arthur's trial goes! Enjoy!**

 **I don't own Hetalia or _A Matter of Life and Death!_**

 _ **Chapter 8 : Judgement!**_

It was almost silent in the operating theatre, broken only by the sound of the anaesthetising machine that was keeping Arthur unconscious while Doctor Smith worked carefully to repair the injury to Arthur's brain. It was slow going and Doctor Smith stopped for a moment so a nurse could mop his brow then he went back to his work as Amelia continued to watch from the windows unaware of the stairway that invisibly climbed down to the floor, bringing the Court with it. When it touched the ground everything went still!

"I see no reason to keep time frozen," the Judge declared. "They still can't see us!" The Jury conferred and Ivan came forward.

"It may show a true picture of the situation, Your honour!" The judge nodded and everyone began to move again. Doctor Smith put down the scalpel he had been using and picked up a clamp while everybody waited to do whatever he needed them to next.

"I call Squadron Leade …...," Jacob began and then became aware of Matthew talking to Francis.

"I was right!" Matthew said. "A adhesion binding the optic nerve to the brain ….." Matthew drone on a little, trying Jacob's patience somewhat.

"Did I tell you about my little operation?" Francis replied, making a cutting motion across his neck in a reference to his death by guillotine.

"Doctor Williams!" Jacob said, exasperated. "We are not here to validate your diagnosis! We are here to ask Squadron Leader Kirkland questions about this case!" Matthew nodded, apologetically.

"Quite right," he agreed. "My apologies!" Jacob turned back to the scene in front of them.

"I call Squadron Leader Arthur A Kirkland!" he announced. Arthur climbed off the table, in full RAF uniform for some reason, and approached the Court assembly.

"Hello, Arthur," Matthew greeted.

"Hello, Matthew," Arthur said back. "How's the operation going?"

"Just fine," Matthew replied. "Smith's a very good doctor!"

"I hope so!" Behind Matthew, Kyle waved at his cousin and Arthur waved back.

"Squadron Leader Kirkland!" Jacob said. "You are on the witness stand, under oath! Do you understand?" Arthur nodded, guessing this man's identity.

"Completely, Mr Blake!" Jacob was surprised.

"You know me, sir?"

"You could only be one person!" And gave Jacob a friendly smile so as to not antagonise him. Jacob grunted.

"Your smile is attractive, sir," he commented and then he frowned. "Did you use it to beguile this young American girl?" Arthur took exception to Jacob's wording, making it sound like Arthur had tricked Amelia for her affection.

"I love her, sir!" he replied, adamantly. Jacob was unconvinced.

"Just answer the question!" he barked.

"Could you repeat the question?" Arthur asked, tweaking the tiger's tail a little. "It had 'beguile' in it!"

"The exact question doesn't matter," Jacob was losing the patience. "Did you consciously influence the emotions of this young lady."

"No, sir!" Arthur denied. "We fell in love before we even met!"

"You claim you love her!"

"I do love her!"

"Can you prove it?"

"Just give me time!" Arthur insisted. "Forty or fifty years should do it!" Matthew had to suppress a laugh. Jacob was not so amused.

" _Can you prove it?"_ he stressed. Arthur shrugged.

"I can only prove I'm hungry by eating," he replied. Jacob gave another grunt.

"Would you die for her?"

"I would!" Matthew got nervous at Arthur's answer and Arthur saw that.

"But I'd rather live," he added.

"You young devil!" Jacob blurted and everyone turned to stare at him so he apologised to the Judge and Jury.

"Your witness!" he said to Matthew.

"No questions. Your Honour!"

"Collector 14!" Jacob called. Francis huffed. His name was _Francis!_

"Oui!"

"Is the young lady available?"

"I put her to sleep," Francis replied. "So you can call her!" Jacob nodded.

"I call Amelia F Jones!" From the operating theatre door, Amelia walked up to Arthur and took his hand before facing the Court. The Judge looked kindly on her as she stared at the Court that held the life of the man she loved in their hands. And then she saw her brother standing with them, looking the same as he did when he was alive and tears filled her eyes.

"Matthew!" she gasped.

"Hello, Amelia," Matthew smiled. He was going to miss her but he would look in on her from time to time. "I'm sorry I had to leave you, sis but I'll still be there for you. Right now, you need to pay attention to what these people say and ask!" The Judge smiled gently at Amelia.

"You are before the High Court in the case of Squadron Leader Arthur Kirkland," he said. "You've been called as a witness by the Prosecution so you must tell the truth!" He indicated Jacob Blake. "This gentleman is Consul for the Prosecution." Amelia turned to Jacob, knowing that this man could condemned Arthur. She squeezed Arthur's hand and he squeezed back.

"Child," Jacob asked his fellow country-woman, gently. "Where were you born?"

"Boston, sir" she replied, respectfully. Jacob glanced toward Arthur.

"Do you really know this man?" he asked.

"I think so!"

"You think so?" Jacob responded.

"I've only know him a week or so," she admitted. She could not know everything about Arthur in such a short time and Jacob knew that too.

"You barely know him at all!" he declared. "How can you think you love him?"

"I do love him!" Amelia insisted. That she was sure of but Jacob merely smiled.

"Nonsense, child!" Matthew was not happy with Jacob trying to tell his sister what her feelings were. Only Amelia could possibly know what they are!

"Objection!" he called out. "The Prosecution will withdrawn the last comment!"

"It's all right, Mattie!" Amelia said. "He has a point! There's no sense in love!" Jacob smiled at the wise observation.

"There is still wisdom in Boston!" he commented. "Can you prove your love for him?" Amelia frowned. There was no way she could! How do you prove such a thing?

"How can I?" she asked. "Love's not a thing you can touch, it's something you feel! It's not tangible so how can you make another person see or feel what you do?" Jacob nodded at her statement.

"Would you die for him?" he asked with seriousness. Matthew did not like the way this was going!

"Yes!" Amelia replied without hesitation. Matthew took a deep breath.

"Would you take his place in the balance sheet?" Jacob demanded.

"Yes!"

"No!" Arthur shouted. "No! Don't believe her!" Arthur could not let Amelia do this! It was not her time and he would not let her sacrifice herself for him! Under no circumstances!

Jacob had to admit he was impressed with Arthur jumping in to prevent Amelia sacrificing herself and decided to test him to see just what he would give up for Amelia. Maybe he was wrong about the British airman.

"Would you?" he asked Amelia again. Arthur lost his temper.

"You have no right to ask that!" he blustered.

"How dare you address me like that?" Jacob said, indignantly. Even Matthew cautioned Arthur to calm down.

"Of all the unhanded tricks!" Arthur fumed. Jacob's face went a shade of red.

"This is contempt of Court!" he threatened. "I'll have you committed!" Arthur held his head up high and pushed Amelia behind him.

"Do what you like!" he challenged and turned to Amelia. "Answer no more questions!"

"You are forfeiting any chance of winning your case with your behaviour," Jacob shouted at Arthur.

"FINE!" Arthur shouted back. He would give up his life before he would allow them to swap Amelia's life for his. "But you're not getting Amelia as well!" Jacob turned to the rest of the Court.

"Your Honour, members of the Jury!" he said and sighed. "He really does love her!" It had taken a lot for Jacob to admit that. That this Englishman could love an American girl so much to give up his life for her, perhaps he had let his hatred of the British of his lifetime cloud his opinion of the British in this day and age but it was proven to him that Arthur Kirkland loved Amelia Jones.

"Your witness!" he said to Matthew. Matthew knew that Jacob had conceded but he also saw the members of the Records Department congregating together, discussing how to win this case. After all, Arthur had proven his love but Amelia was yet to prove hers.

And he could not let them use that so he had to prove that his sister loved Arthur just as much as he loved her. He had heard Jacob say that, in the Universe, in Heaven, nothing was stronger than the law.

But they were not in Heaven!

"Amelia," he said, softly to his sister. "You trust me, don't you?" Amelia wondered why her brother was asking her that.

"Of course I do!" she replied. Arthur could not believe what Matthew said next.

"Amelia," he said. "It's imperative that you take Arthur's place in the other world!"

"HAVE YOU GONE MAD!" Arthur bellowed. Even Jacob stared at Matthew in shock! Amelia was the Canadian doctor's half sister, why was he doing this to her? Matthew ignored them all.

"Amelia," he told her. "If you love Arthur, you must step on to this stairway and come with us!"

"YOU ARE MAD!" Arthur screamed and Jacob was inclined to agree with him. If Matthew made his sister do this, it would happen. Amelia's life on Earth would end and Jacob was no more eager to see Amelia in Heaven prematurely than Arthur.

"It's the only way to prove you love him!" Matthew warned, trying to get Amelia to understand that he had a reason for doing this. He did not know if she knew but …

"Yes!" she said. "I do love him!" And she moved to go to the stairway but Arthur grabbed her and pushed her back.

"You're not going!" he declared and turned back toward Matthew to give him a piece of his mind. Matthew turned to the Judge.

"I request that Arthur Kirkland be restrained, Your Honour!" he said. The Judge held up his hand.

"Granted!" Arthur found he could not move, frozen on the spot. He fought against it but he could not move a muscle.

He was powerless to stop anything from happening!

"Amelia!" Matthew held out his hand to his sister and Amelia slowly made her way over to him. Jacob could not believe Matthew was doing this to Amelia.

"Be careful, Doctor Williams," Jacob warned as Amelia came to the stairway. "Once this is done, there's no going back. In the whole Universe, nothing is stronger than the law!" Matthew just continued to hold out his hand. Amelia took it and he pulled her on to the stairway. She turned to take one last look at Arthur as the stairway began to rise.

"Goodbye, sweetheart!"

Arthur fought to stop her but he could not break whatever the Judge had done to him and all he could do was watch in anguish as Amelia moved further and further away from him. It might mean that he would live but he only wanted live because of Amelia. Without her, life was pointless!

As the stairway went higher, taking her away from Arthur, tears fell from her eyes, knowing she would never see him again. Or at least until he died. Again! Jacob sent Matthew looks of disgust while wanting to comfort Amelia. Anyone could tell that she love Arthur!

Suddenly, the stairway came to a halt and refused to move another inch.

"Yes, Mr Blake!" Matthew said, triumphantly. "In the Universe, nothing is stronger than the law! But, on Earth, nothing is stronger than love!" Amelia realised what Matthew had been doing. Love had refused to allow Arthur and her to be parted and had over-written the law of the Universe. With tears of happiness this time, she ran down the stairs and into Arthur's arms as he was unfrozen. He held her tight, refusing to let her go and Amelia did not want him to.

"Members of the Jury," the Judge announced. "Will you please consider your verdict?" The Jury huddled together to discuss it. It did not take long!

"Case for the defendant, Your Honour!" Ivan announced. Kyle slapped both Matthew and Francis on the back, much to the discomfort of the latter.

"Then the only thing left to do is to amend the date in Arthur Kirkland's file," The Judge commented as Gaia handed him a scroll and quill. He looked at both Matthew and Jacob. "Will both Consuls approve the new date?" He scribbled something on the scroll and showed it to Matthew who's eyes glowed with approval.

"Very generous, Your Honour!" he commented and the Judge showed the scroll to Jacob.

"Is that not a little …..?" he began to object but decided it was not worth it. "I agree!" The Judge handed the scroll back to Gaia, who was not happy that the Department had lost the case.

"I hope this does not set a precedent," she commented.

"OBJECTION!" both Consuls said at the same time. Matthew indicated to Jacob to continue but Jacob insisted that Matthew go first.

"The rights of the Common Man …..." Matthew was interrupted by Jacob.

"The Uncommon Man..."

"The Uncommon Man must always be upheld!" And both Consuls smiled at each other in agreement.

* * *

The operation came to an end and had gone as well as it possible could. The nurses prepared to wheel Arthur into recovery as everyone else went to the wash-room to clean up after the operation. Doctor Smith untied his face mask and removed his surgical cap. Short, blonde slicked back hair appeared from under it and he rubbed his pale blue eyes. He looked like a younger version of the Judge, possibly a descendant. He went to get cleaned up, secure in the knowledge that Doctor Smith, AKA Doctor Ludwig Beilschmidt had saved another life.

His anaesthetist followed him into the wash room, removing his own cap, revealing his auburn hair, a curl stringing out to the left. A happy smile appeared from behind his surgical mask which he removed as he came up beside Ludwig. Feliciano Vargas was also watched carefully and he was a big part of why Ludwig left Germany to begin with. He and the happy Italian were lovers and such a relationship between men was more than frown on in his home country at the moment. Not that it was accepted here but what people here did not know would not hurt them!

* * *

Francis ran down the stairway as quickly as he could with a book in his hand.

"Arthur!" he called out. "Don't forget your book!" He threw it and the book fell to Earth with its pages fluttering.

* * *

Once she knew Arthur was out of danger, Amelia, seemingly with no memory of being before a Heavenly court, went home to bathe, change her uniform and she brought back bed clothes for Arthur. She guessed he would want to be out of hospital gowns as soon as possible as she unzipped the bag in the room they had put him in. She pulled out a house coat out of the bag but it felt a little heavy. When she checked the pockets. She found a book stuff into one and she pulled it out. It was a book about chess.

Arthur lay in the bed, still asleep but then he began to stir.

"Matthew," he whispered. "Matthew!" Tears sprang into Amelia's eyes to hear her dead brother's name on Arthur's lips but she was also happy that Arthur was coming round and she went to his side.

Arthur opened his emerald eyes and the first thing he saw was Amelia looking down at him with a smile but tears in her eyes but she looked wonderful to him.

"Hello," he smiled. Amelia's smile grew wider.

"Hi!"

"We won!" he said and Amelia stroked his face.

"I know, sweetheart!" she replied and she leant down and kissed him

And Arthur kissed her back!

* * *

Everyone from the base and the village attended Matthew's funeral, everyone except Arthur who was not considered to be well enough to be released from the hospital and he bemoaned the fact that he could not be with Amelia as they buried her brother but he took comfort in the fact that Lukas and Matthias were with her and would look after her but he had wanted to be there himself. Not only for Amelia's sake but to say good-bye to the man who had saved his life.

Allistor, Rhys, Patrick and Seamus arrived after receiving the telegram about Arthur and driving, non-stop, to see him. He was happy to see them but they were soon driving each other nuts with their bickering until Amelia returned from the church which had been packed to the rafters and the Kirkland Brothers behaved themselves from then on.

When Arthur recovered enough to be released, the first place he and Amelia went was to the graveyard beside the church and made their way to the newest stone.

 _Matthew Williams_

 _Beloved Brother and Friend_

Amelia held on to Arthur's arm as he put his other hand on the stone, respectfully.

"Sorry I couldn't come to your funeral, Matthew," he said. "Bloody doctors wouldn't let me out! I really wanted to be there!" Amelia rested her head against Arthur's shoulder.

"I'm sure he knows, sweetheart," she said and Arthur put his arm around her shoulders.

"I promise you, Mattie," Arthur vowed. "I'll take care of Amelia for you. You won't have to worry about her any more. I promise, I'll do everything I can to make her happy!" Arthur looked down into Amelia's face and smiled. She smiled back and kissed him, Arthur returning the kiss.

In the church, the bells rang with no one ringing them!

* * *

Arthur married Amelia and they had a long and happy marriage, with three sons, Alfred, named after Arthur's father, Matthew, after Amelia's brother and Peter, after Amelia's father. They had seven grand-children and Arthur lived to the ripe old age of ninety-four.

He died comfortably in his sleep, peacefully with Amelia by his side as she past away with him. It was almost as if, after everything, the Judge gave Arthur the same date as Amelia so they would not be separated even by death. Francis came to collect both of them and they went with him willingly. They had been given plenty of life together.

Heaven had waited long enough!

 **So that's the end! Yes, Doctor Smith was Germany and I could not have Germany without Italy! (I'm such a Gerita shipper XD) Jacob Blake finally came round to the fact that Arthur and Amelia did love each other. All's well that finally ends well! :D**

 **To Maveriqua** **– Don't be too hard on Jacob! Dying at British hands would have to be a bad memory and at least he came round in the end! :) As you see, she took it well but she doesn't remember it. But the important thing is …. Arthur won! XDDD**

 **To takuya** **– Thanks! :) I don't think Matthew would have got the result he did with the original Jury :( I hope the last chapter was everything you hope it would be!**

 **To ArtemisIsis13** **\- Blake's not really a bad guy! He's a just a patriot with bad memories of the British but he now realises that Arthur's not the same as the ones who killed him and if you look into the history of most nations, they all have things to be ashamed off DX. Like I said, that gave me a twisted little thrill X) The song was _Shoo, shoo, shoo baby_ and was done by a few people, The Andrews Sisters and Bing Crosby among them. And both Arthur and Amelia managed to convince them and they lived a long life. Yay! True Love for the win! XDDD**

 **And that's your lot! Hopefully I'll be able to get back to Hetalia Tales 5:5 now! I hope you all have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! And don't forget to check our my Christmas Story! It's called _I saw Daddy kissing Santa Claus!_ (Guess what that's about! XP)**

 **Season's Greetings to all!**

 **Hasta la Pasta!**


End file.
